When a summer turns into forever
by metropoli69
Summary: The battle is over, Hermione is lost. She had managed to save Fred but he is in coma and Hermione thinks she had failed. Discover my version of what happened to her after the war and how a summer with Fred Weasley will change her life forever. Harry Potter is the property of JKR, I do not own anything. Rating will change to M later
1. Chapter 1

Hello.

I've written this story a while ago, almost a year ago but I was not sure if I should post it or not but finally I've decided to post it.

It is a Fremione story and it is based on Hermione and how she dealt with the after war, how she ended up choosing Fred instead of Ron.

As as teenager, when I first read the book, I was a huge fan of Harmony, I never liked Romione, until I re read the books, years later, in VO this time, and realized that Harry would have been a good match for Hermione and vice versa except for one thing, unlike Ron, Harry had never seen Hermione as something more than his best friend, a sister... and then something hit me, specially on the fourth and fifth book, Fred and Hermione's interaction. There is no direct interaction between those two until the fourth book, and it goes on and on and that's how I started to ship them.

Then I read that JKR did think about killing Ron and having Hermione and Fred together, truth or hoax, it doesn't matter anymore but eh it would have been a very good match and I have to say that I do believe that it did cross her mind otherwise I really don't understand why suddenly those two started to interact and there was definitely an intent to make them interact and even signs to demonstrate that they did care about each other.

Unfortunately for us, Fremione shipper, JKR had decided to keep Ron and Arthur alive and to stick with her original plan which included Romione and I think that the sixth book confirmed it as suddenly Hermione was in love with Ron. The answer is no, I do not think that Hermione was in love with Ron before but I do think that Ron had always liked Hermione but her, no way. She definitely, from my POV, cared more about Harry than Ron and I still think that she might had feelings for Harry, hum hum the kiss on platform 9 3/4 at the end of the fourth book, the hug at the beg of the fifth, christmas holidays during OtP...

Also, people always wondered why Fred had to die and not another Weasley, well I like to believe that Fred because since Ron was going to live and end up with the girl then JKR had nothing left for Fred. No, I do not believe the theory saying that Fred had to die because the Weasleys could not all make it, first why not!? and then ok, let go one Weasley but choose Percy instead, that would have been tragic for all the Weasleys, maybe even more than Fred's death. Why? Easy, Percy had not been in touch with his family for so long, he was just back to his sense and his death would have let all the Weasleys, specially Molly with regrets and remorse, plus it would have been easy, Fred and Percy were together when it happened.

I think that Harry will always end with Ginny while, in all the parallel universes, Hermione never ends up with Ron. And this is why I've chosen to write my own version of the after war with Hermione and Fred being the good match.

In this story, we will see how Hermione dealt with her feelings for Ron after the war, how she dealt with her action (saving Fred and only Fred), how she slowly realized that she might still had feelings for Fred... and of course, we will see how Fred awoken from his coma, how he forbade himself to let his feelings for the bookworm resurface until he decided to finally accept them and prove to Hermione that they belong together...

I hope you will like it.

...

3rd of May 1998.

When they had left St Mungo it was already dark outside. The wind was cold for a beginning of May but the sky was clear.

Hermione was shivering. She was not sure if it was because of the wind or because of everything else though.

Yes the war was over, yes they had won, yes Voldemort was not gone but dead, finally defeated but at which price.

They had left Hogwarts a couple of hours ago, they had left not a school but something that looked like a graveyard, the amount of dead seemed to never stop its growth.

The tears of joy, from the victory, had vanished away as soon as they had stepped into the Great Hall, when they had started to count the dead and to look for the living. 280 persons had died, 74 had not been found, most of them were Death Eaters that had probably escaped, 87 were seriously injured or in coma like Fred, 13 were going to die before dawn and only 194 had survived, even if they added the 74, who had disappeared, to the list of the living, the amount of dead was still way higher.

...

Pr Flitwick had said earlier that it was time to write a new chapter, to start over but Hermione had no idea how she was supposed to go on with her life after what had just happened.

For the first time since she had gotten her letter, almost eight years ago, she was thinking that perhaps her life would have been easier in the Muggle's world, could be easier because she did not know if she could ever find peace in this world, if Harry could ever forgive himself. She knew him, she knew that her best friend was blaming himself and somehow she knew that she was blaming herself too.

She, never, had a thought about what her life could have been because she had always felt part of the wizarding world and it was definitely not the time to think about any what if. She had made choices and she had always assumed them until now. She was having doubts and Hermione Granger never had doubts before, she was a confident young woman, well at least she used to be...

...

She pressed the pendant, that was hidden under her shirt, against her breast.

She could not stop thinking about what she had done, she could not even explain why she had done it. Nobody would understand her decision. Nobody could find out.

Dumbledore, surprisingly present in his portrait in Pr McGonagall's office, had told her to do not overthink about it, which was easy to say but hard to do since she had failed, Fred was in coma, closer to death than life.

Dumbledore had warned her that sometimes it was not possible to change the past no matter how hard a person tried. When it was written, it was better to accept fate instead of playing with her and to take the risk to disrupt the balance of time.

...

Earlier in Pr McGonagall's office

_« Death and fate are complicated ladies Miss Granger, it is better to do not upset them but you have to try, we will know only after you've tried what was really written. » had said the old man in his painting_

_« But what about the consequences. » had asked a torn Hermione_

_« They don't have to be negative. Do it, you want to do it otherwise you wouldn't have come here. I've been bothering you long enough, go now and have faith. If you ever feel lost Hermione listen to your heart, take it from an old man you hadn't listened to it enough. » had said Dumbledore with a sincere smile_

_« Thanks I guess. Goodbye Professor Dumbledore. »_

...

Fred could not die, Hermione refused to believe that his death was already written.

He was supposed to be there with them, not fighting for his life in the hospital's bed of the room 502. He could not die, he just could not because if he died, the Weasleys would have lost more than just one son. There was no George without Fred, there was no Fred without George and there was no happy and full Weasley's family without their devilish twins.

He was 20 years old, he was brilliant and his death would affect too many lives, it just could not be true.

But what else could she do, she had used the time turner, she could not take the risk to use it again, she had no other option than waiting patiently to see what was going to happen.

She was following the rest of the group without knowing how she could still walk as even breathing was painful.

The word failed was resonating in her head, it had a double meaning but nobody knew why except her. She could not tell anyone, Dumbledore had made her swear that she would not tell anyone.

...

Still lost in her thoughts Hermione was not paying attention of what Arthur was saying.

She briefly raised her gaze and her eyes met Ron's. She felt a knot in her stomach, Ron, they had kissed, twice, earlier but the meaning of those kisses was now as foggy as everything else. She had not felt what she thought she would. She had feared it for a while now and she did not know how to face Ron, how to explain him. She did not even know if she should, she was lost, really lost.

How were they supposed to go on with their lives, how. It seemed impossible which was odd because Pr Flitwick was right, it was the start of a new Era. Voldemort was dead, it was time to write a new chapter and to make people forget about Voldemort's ideals.

They would have to fight again and Hermione was tired of fighting.

She was eighteen and she had the feeling that she had not done anything with her life except being the undesirable number two, the mudblood, the unbearable know it all. She was an adult who had been robbed of her teenage years, it was impacting her now that the war was over because she was feeling lost and confused instead of happy and relieved.

For many, she had lived more experiences than everyone else but she had the feeling that she had not been living at all with the exception of the Yule Ball and few more moments, most of them weren't even real, they were just dreams. She had been surviving and now she had to learn how to live, just live.

Except Harry, she had the feeling that no one else could understand it, not even Ron. Ron was experimenting other feelings, sadness, powerlessness, death and alleviation.

We aren't on the same page but have we ever. She wondered sadly to herself

Their gaze met, briefly, again. He smiled at her but she could not smile back. She was too confused to give him hopes.

...

I know I've changed the amount of dead, sorry for that and sorry for the mistakes english is not my mother tongue.


	2. Chapter 1 part II

Here is the rest of the first chapter.

Fantasygirl20, thanks for your review. let me know what you think of this one too :)

...

Images of the Great Hall were stuck in her head.

Hermione had the feeling that yes they had won but they had waited too much and during all those months hunting the horcruxes, hidden in the forest they had let people died instead of fighting, front row. She had followed Harry, they had followed the road that Dumbledore had drew for them without thinking too much about what they had left behind them.

For months, she believed that her protective charms had been protecting them, her, Harry and Ron, when he had been with them, but she was wrong, what had been protecting them, giving them time had been all those persons fighting for them just because they believed that Harry was the chosen one. Harry was, indeed, the chosen one but did that mean that they all had been right.

For months, years actually her priority number one had been Harry, to help him, to protect him and to follow him even when Harry was clearly wrong like that day at the department of Mysteries.

She loved Harry, so much but in that moment a part of her was feeling guilty qnd slightly angry. They had been so selfish, Dumbledore had been the worst of all, raising Harry without giving him the chance to decide about his own destiny just because the old man, just like Voldemort, had decided to believe the prophecy of the biggest fraud that she had ever met in her life, Sybill Trelawney.

Tears felt on her cheeks as she thought about Teddy, the poor baby boy was only a month old and he had already lost his parents. One day, if Teddy decided that it was their fault, Harry, Ron and hers, she would understand and accept it because this was exactly what she was thinking.

...

The voice of Mrs Weasley took her out of her thoughts

« Hermione, Dear are you alright. Do you feel strong enough to apparate. »

« Sorry, what did you just say. » asked Hermione who was finally paying attention.

Molly observed the young witch, so did some other members of the Weasley's family like Percy, George and Ron of course, before to repeat what she had just said to Hermione.

Hermione felt too many eyes on her, she particularly disliked the way that Percy and Ron were looking at her. It felt as if they were both dissecting her or trying to read her mind.

She mumbled an answer as she had decided to look at her feet instead of taking the risk to meet Ron's blue eyes again or worst Percy's gaze.

« Yes I am fine just tired but yes I can apparate. »

« Good so at three. I must warn you all though, we haven't been at the burrow for a couple of months, I am not even sure that we still have a home. » Molly finished her sentence in a whisper, tears beading at the corner of her eyes.

« Even if we don't, we will rebuild it, at least we are all alive and that's what is important. » said Arthur before to kiss his wife's forehead. His arms protectively wrapped around his wife, he looked at his family and smiled. It was a weak but encouraging smile, his family was alive and reunited, Fred was in coma yes but alive and for now that was the most important for the patriarch.

George's sobs drifted the attention away from Molly and Arthur.

Again Hermione felt guilty and angry, she should have done better. She had not been fast enough to stop the wall from falling, with Fred under it. She just had enough time to cast an old protective charm that she had once read across one of her reading during her sixth year.

Of course, Fred was not dead however the Healers were not very optimistic. They had told them that almost all Fred's bones were broken and of course nobody could understand how come he was still alive.

Hermione was pretty sure that she had caught Percy staring at her when Healer in Chief Thomas had said that it was not a miracle, that it was magic that had saved Fred, an old charm casted on the very last minute to save him from death, to keep his heart beating and connected to his brain.

« He should be dead. » had been the last words of Healer in chief Thomas.

...

The voice of Molly took her back to earth again.

« George, Honey don't cry, he will wake up. » said Molly who took her son in her arms and hugged him tightly

Hermione's tears intensified, Ron was looking at her in a suspicious way.

He walked towards her and he tried to take her hands but she walked away from him. She took Harry's and Ginny's hands instead of his which made the youngest Weasley male frowned.

Molly, who was still hugging George tightly, did not loose anything of this weird scene between her youngest son and the person that she had already been imagining as her future daughter in law for a couple of years now.

She closed her eyes and decided to do not worry about it, Hermione's attitude had been odd since the end of the battle and Molly could not blame the young woman for being lost, they all were, weren't they!?


	3. Chapter 2

Here is chapter 2.

Please let me know your thoughts.

...

The state of the Burrow was far beyond what they could have imagined. From the outside it seemed to be fine, except the broken glasses of the windows however the inside had been destroyed.

It looked like the Death Eaters had made their best to destroy everything, even the old clock had been broken. Pieces were laying on the floor with the portraits of each member of the family scattered on the floor.

Molly and Arthur were devastated and so were their children. Hermione looked at Harry, as the Weasleys, they both had tears running on their cheeks.

...

Bill had been the first to get out of this odd trance and with the help of his beloved, Fleur, he collected the portraits and fixed the clock while Ginny and Arthur were comforting Molly.

Charlie and Percy went upstairs to check the rooms.

George was scanning the living room as if he was looking for something, when his gaze met Hermione's. She looked away and she joined her two best friends who had gone outside to secure the Burrow. Many Death Eaters had escaped and for sure some would try to come and get revenge.

...

When they went back inside, the Weasleys were cleaning. It was late but they did not care, it was their house, their home.

...

Nobody spoke for a while.

All the pictures had been cut in pieces, except the last family picture that had been taken at Bill and Fleur's wedding almost a year ago.

Above the picture was engraved, in red, on the wall

Blood traitors will be punished.

Sentence: death

Arthur and Bill did try to clean the wall but it had been engraved with dark magic, they all knew that it would not disappear unless they broke the wall.

Molly took the picture off from the wall and tried, in vain, to erase the word traitors written in all the Weasleys foreheads. Hermione and Harry were also on this picture but they could no longer see their faces on it, they had simply been cut off.

They looked at each other but did not say a word. They did not need word to understand what was going on the head of the other.

They both wanted to disappear. They had always considered the Weasleys their family, their wizarding family but in that moment both felt like strangers who had popped into the Weasleys family, a loving, peaceful family to destroy them. The Weasleys had done so much for them, so much for Harry, too much maybe.

Hermione wished that she could disappear just as her image had disappeared from the picture.

For few seconds she wondered if the Weasleys could be thinking the same thing, it would be understandable though it did not look like they were not considering Harry and her as family anymore.

Actually, before to leave Fred's room in St Mungo, Harry and Hermione had said that they could go back to Hogwarts and spent the night there but Molly and Arthur had told them that now that the war was over, it was time for family's reunion.

Those two words had not left Hermione. She had always considered the Burrow as a second home but that night Hermione thought about her true home, about her parents, about her family and how much she was missing them.

She was completely broken inside, the end of the battle had emptied her for a brief moment until a tsunami of emotions had submerged her. Emotions and feelings that she had been holding back since she had left her house 10 months ago or even more than that.

A couple of hours later.

It was late, almost 11pm already but they all stayed up until past midnight to arrange the Burrow as much as they could to be able to sleep in it.

« Well Percy do you mind to let your room to Bill and Fleur, you could sleep upstairs with Charlie, you Hermione you sleep with Ginny of course and you Harry you sleep with Ron. George you can sleep with Charlie and Percy or Harry and Ron, wherever you want. » said Molly with dust all over her face.

« I actually would like to sleep in our room. »replied George coolly

« Of course George if that's what you want. » answered Molly who had started to cry again, followed by Ginny, Percy and Fleur this time.

Hermione was making a huge effort to do not burst into tears too, she was forcing herself to remember that Fred was not dead, that he was alive but the pain in the Weasleys' eyes was so deep, it was breaking her heart.

They all went to bed few minutes later after making sure one more time that the house was safe enough for the night.

...

In Ginny's room

Ginny wanted to talk, there was so much that she wanted to know. However, after getting only yes or no to a couple of questions, she stared at Hermione and realized that Hermione looked worst than most of them, not because of her scratches, dirty clothes, body and hair but because of the pain in her eyes.

« It will get better Mione, now it can only get better. » affirmed Ginny as if she was trying to convince herself aswell and not just her friend.

« I wish I could be as optimistic as you are Ginny but for now I just want to sleep and forget about everything that had happened. » replied Hermione coldly without looking at her friend.

« Oh alright, good night then. » replied Ginny who was taken aback by Hermione's tone.

Hermione adjusted her blankets and apologized. She did not mean to be rude.

« Sorry, it is just just just, I don't know. I can't find the right word. »

The room was small and the two beds were closed enough for Ginny to touch Hermione's arm.

« Mione, whenever you will feel ready to talk, I will be here. Harry doesn't want to talk either, I think you both need time to let it sink but it is over Hermione, this time it really is. We are all going to finally be able to go on with our lives. »

« Thanks Ginny. Good night. » was all Hermione could reply.

She laid in her bed for a while thinking about what Ginny had said, going on with their lives. This was her main problem, she had nowhere to go both literally and figuratively. She had nothing to rely on, nothing to go on with and she never really thought about her life post war because she had never really believed that she would make it alive. Her only thought had been about Ron and a possible relationship but this was no longer an option.

She looked at Ginny, who was sleeping already, and felt something close to jealousy. Ginny had everything she did not have. Ginny had a family, house, a man who truly loved her and a relationship waiting for her and Harry to go back where they were.

Hermione was not a jealous person, she just did not want to start over...


	4. Chapter 3

Here we go with a new chapter.

FantasyGirl20, I am glad you liked it :)

Tegfhorn, welcome :)

Lizairy Cullen it is mine too :))

and Elena, oh amazing, I am not the only one who has seen those things in the books :) and I think that if the movies would have been more like the books more people would be Fremione lovers. In the movies, the twins are not seen that often while in the books they are always around, specially book 4 and 5 and I would have loved to see some Fremione moments like:

I would have love to see the punching telescope scene from book 6.

The scene when Hermione said that it is extraordinary magic from book 5.

When Hermione went after Fred and George, took a box from Fred's hands and started to argue with him, and the famous I will write to your mother of course.

When she went to bed after watching them and said that she could not focus on what she was doing

When Fred looked by the window and said that without Quidditch there was nothing good left for him at hogwarts and Hermione told him that they could not live

and of course when Fred said that they had been quiet during the holiday to let people study

and so much more because the OtP is full of Fremione's moments.

Anyway here is chapter 3 :)

...

On the next morning, Hermione woke up after only few hours of sleep. She would not have slept at all if Molly had not given her a potion for dreamless sleep.

However, she was not feeling tired. Even if she had slept only five hours, after months without sleeping more than a couple of hours in a row, 5 hours felt like heaven.

As her watch was marking 5:30am and the house was still quiet, she tried to sleep a bit more but after fifteen minutes with horrible images coming back to her everytime she was closing her eyes, she, finally, gave up and left the room without making any noise as Ginny was still deeply asleep.

...

Wand in her hand, she was ready to defend herself if needed. It was stupid, she knew it. She was safe at the Burrow but so many Death Eaters had been hunting them for so long, it was going take more than a night to forget about it and anyway as long as Death Eaters would be on the run, she knew that she was going to remain their target number 2.

Also, her body and her mind were still feeling the pain that she had been through at the Malfoy's Manor. The letters engraved into her skin were hurting more than a scald.

...

She, first, went to the kitchen. It was empty, everybody was probably still sleeping thought a Hermione relieved to do not have to talk just yet.

So much had happened over the last 48 hours that she just could not think straight.

She looked at the window, it was not that dark outside anymore, it was almost dawn and she could distinguish the figure of Harry sat on the bench outside. Somehow, it did not surprise her to see her best friend, alone, outside. He was for sure feeling worst than her and he, certainly, wanted to be as far as possible from the Weasleys, just like her... not because they did not like them but because they loved them too much.

...

Without hesitation, she joined him outside. With a weak smile on her lips, she sat next to him and let her head rest on his right shoulder. He smiled at her and wrapped his right arm around her shoulders.

They did not say anything for five long minutes. They did not need to talk, the presence of the other was enough until Harry, suddenly, broke the silence.

« I feel awful Hermione. I cannot look at them in the eyes, I just cannot. They have been through too much because of me. » he said in a low voice. It was almost a whisper.

Hermione knew exactly how he was feeling but she had to find a way to comfort him and to stop him from making a mistake. How much they wanted to leave the Burrow did not matter, they could not leave the Weasleys, it would be such a big lack of respect and it would only increase their feeling of guilt.

« Harry it is not your fault, I feel exactly the same but you can't blame yourself. » she started

But it seemed that Harry did not want to listen. He interrupted her And Hermione let him.

« They are all dead because of me, because I did not act fast enough, because. » he stopped

He could not finish, it was too hard so she finished his sentence. She had always found it extremely odd everytime Fred or George were finishing the sentence of the other, she had always wondered what it would feel to have such a deep connection with someone, now she knew because she had it with Harry.

« Because we were hidding when they were fighting, because we did not find the horcruxes soon enough, because we thought we had enough time, I know but Harry, we've done it, we've succeeded. » She said not sure if the last part sounded convincing or shaky though.

« Yes go tell that to all the grieving families. I don't even understand how Andromeda did not kill me yesterday. And I don't care that they are saying that it was their choice to fight, it won't change anything, they are dead and their son will never know them because of me. And Severus, and Colin, more than a hundred Hermione» he replied in tears.

He raised his gaze to meet Hermione's chocolate eyes before to continue

« If Fred doesn't make it, I won't stay here, I won't. » affirmed Harry

When she heard Fred's name, Hermione felt a lump in her throat, she looked down but Harry did not notice and kept talking.

« Yesterday, Ginny had told me I love you, I did not know what to say, how can she love me when one of her brother, her favorite brother is between life and death because of me. I will never forgive myself for this one. I destroyed this family and many more. »

Hermione's nails clutched the bench. She took a deep breath. She wanted to tell Harry what she had done but she knew that she could not. He would not understand, worst he would certainly be mad at her for saving only one life. He would ask her questions to which she had no answer.

She could not tell him: I did it because I felt that I had to do it... that would sound wonderful and for sure, Harry would be delighted...

« Harry, Fred is not dead, he is alive and he will wake up, he has to. » she whispered still looking at her feet.

« Did not you listen yesterday, Healer Thomas said that he should be dead that he certainly won't make it. »

She had nothing to reply to this, yes I heard it seemed way too stupid.

« Hermione what did I do. » moaned Harry

« We, Harry we, I am as responsible as you in all this. The brightest witch of my generation my ass, I could not even figure out how to destroy the locket or what the other horcruxes could be. » she said in tears, finally raising her gaze.

They were both wailing.

...

They were looking into each other's eyes with so much pain that if someone walked on them, that person would ended up in tears aswell

« I am sorry Hermione, sorry for dragging you in all this, for stealing your life. I don't know what I've done to deserve a friend like you. I am not mad at Ron, you know, for leaving us at some point because if I had been him, I would not have come back. I love you both, you have no idea how much I love you. I love you Hermione. »

« I love you too Harry and I will always be there for you. Harry, we cannot keep blaming ourselves because now it is our turn to be here and to support the people that had been behind us for so long, without whom we would have never made it. We can't leave the Weasleys, they need us. And I don't want you to leave Ginny unless you don't love her, she needs you. Do you love her Harry. »

« I do but. » he said without a hint a of hesitation

« There is not but then »

Harry interrupted her again

« Love or not it doesn't change anything if Fred dies. » snapped Harry

Hermione bit her lips, she had not taken the risk to use the time turner for nothing.

« He won't, he can't and he knows that. Don't you worry, Fred knows that he can't leave his family, George and. »

She made a pause because she had been about to say me and she did not even know why. The word had been about to get out of her mouth before she could think about it.

Harry was staring at her, waiting for Hermione to finish her sentence. Bewildered, he had raised an eyebrow

« And the shop of course. » finished Hermione with a smile

« I hope he will listen to you then. » replied Harry who was looking at her with a very confused look.

...

Ron will be on from next chapter but I needed a chapter just for Harry and Hermione. It is the last mourning chapter though Hermione is not done with her introspection.

please let me know your thoughts


	5. Chapter 4

Oh thanks Ladies for your comments :))))

Elena, oh I had forgotten about the tart, poor Neville

Kat8500, welcome :)

Starlight1313 welcome too :)

I am so happy that you like the story :)))

Let's see what you think about this one with Ron.

xx

...

Harry and Hermione were still sat on the bench, lost in their world, when Ron had found them to tell them that breakfast was ready. He saw their interlaced fingers but did not make any comment about it.

« Let's go then I am starving. I can't believe it, a real breakfast. » said Harry enthusiastically

« Can't believe it either mate, I did not know I've missed sausages that much until I saw them on the table. » replied the redhead as cheerful as his best friend

« Come on Hermione, let's go. » said the boys at the same time as they realized that their best friend was not moving.

Ron asked her if she was alright, asked her how come she was not starving. Hermione simply shrugged. She did not know how to talk to Ron after their kisses. She still was not sure about what she should do. She knew what she wanted. She did not want a relationship with Ron but how to tell him that was a all different thing...

...

It was only 6:45am but everybody was already up. George was even dressed up and ready to leave.

Molly had to remind him several times that he would not be able to see his twin before 8am.

« George, I know it is hard, it is for all of us but George, St Mungo doesn't open before 8am and you've heard Healer Thomas yesterday, there won't be any exception, either we like it or not. Come on, take a sit and eat something. With the food that Hagrid had given to me yesterday, I've made a real feast. »

« I am not hungry Mum. » replied George who clearly could not care less about the benedict eggs, the indecent amount of sausages and toasts that were on the table

They argued for a couple of minutes and finally George gave up. Seeing Fred on his hospital's bed was gonna be hard enough, he did not need to add a fight with his mother to what was going to be for sure one of the worst day of his life.

He sat in front of Ginny and between Charlie and Bill to be sat as far as possible from his mother.

...

When the trio arrived, there were only two empty seats between Ginny and Percy and another between Molly and Fleur. Obviously none of them wanted to sit between the two women but it looked like nobody wanted to move. Ginny forced Harry to sit next to her which forced Hermione to look at Ron.

She did not want to be in between Fleur and Molly but arguing with Ron because of a seat would be ridiculous and frustrating.

She smiled at Ron and told him to take the seat next to Harry but Ron wanted to be next to Hermione. He wanted to talk to her as he had the feeling that she was avoiding him.

So he asked Percy to move so he could sit next to Hermione. Ron knew that Ginny would not move even if he begged his little sister. Percy grumbled but let Ron sat between him and Hermione.

...

Ron tried to talk to Hermione and it appeared to be a very complicated task. He asked her if she wanted tea or coffee, if she preferred something else instead of her eggs as she was not eating but she was only mumbling yes or no which was starting to irritate him.

Everybody was enjoying the show but no one dared to make any comment. They all knew that Hermione and Ron always ended up fighting and were pretty sure that it was not going to be any different that morning.

And they were right. After another tentative, finally, Ron lost his temper. Harry was pretty sure that he had seen Charlie winked at Bill and vice versa.

« What's your problem, what did I do to upset you, I thought everything was good between us, you are impossible. » he shouted

Everybody had stopped eating to look at Ron. They were also all waiting for Hermione's answer and it certainly surprised them all.

« Let me breathe Ron. » sighed Hermione

« I was just trying to be nice, and it would not kill you to try, you know to be nice. »

Hermione glared at him before to ask permission to leave the table. As she was reaching the stairs Ron opened his mouth but Percy pulled the rug from under him

« Leave her alone. »

« You leave me alone. I don't even know what you are doing here Percy, aren't we not good enough for you »

« I apologized already Ron and believe me, I still feel bad, there is no need to remind me how I used to behave. » said Percy calmly

« Let's see if you can remember that next time we need your support. » mumbled Ron

« I cannot changed what is done Ron and I apologized already. »

« Not to me arse licket. » replied Ron with anger

« Enough boys, Ron that's enough. Your brother had made amends and there is no need to talk about the past. You certainly aren't perfect either, you know what I am talking about, don't you. » Arthur scolded firmly

Ron looked at his father, yes he knew so he closed his mouth and focused on his plate.

« See exactly my point son, no need to twist the knife in the wound. » finished Mr Weasley

...

They all finished to eat in silence still surprised by the scene between Ron and Hermione, Harry included. As everybody else, he thought that now that the war was over his best friends would become a couple, apparently he was wrong.

...

After breakfast, George, who could not wait any longer, left to St Mungo with Charlie. Molly did not want any of her children to be alone at any moment.

Molly with the help of Fleur, Ginny and Hermione arranged the rooms while Arthur was fixing, with his sons and Harry, the doors and windows.

Molly, Arthur and Ginny left the house to go to St Mungo around 10:30am. They had divided them in two groups to visit Fred.

Ron, Bill, Fleur, Harry and Hermione had gotten the shift of the afternoon, Molly had made the groups otherwise Hermione would have asked to be on the first group. She did not want to talk to Ron.

...

When the first group, George included, came back for lunch Harry said that he could not stay for lunch as he had promised Andromeda to visit her and Teddy. Hermione who saw an excuse to be away from Ron for a couple of hours said that she would go with him as Molly made clear that none of them could travel alone because of the amount of Death Eaters on the run.

« Well Dear sure you can go with Harry. » said Molly who was getting more and more confused by the attitude of the young witch and she was not the only one...

« See you at the hospital around 2:30. Be careful. » warned Bill as he watched Harry and Hermione leaving the house.

...

Ron almost did not eat and when his mother asked him what was going on between him and Hermione, he told his family about their kisses and how he thought that Hermione was his girlfriend. Ginny and Charlie rolled their eyes several times.

« But apparently I misunderstood the all story. She is avoiding me, I don't even know why. » Ron said sadly

Molly and Fleur tried to comfort him but George made a comment that let them all speechless.

« Advice brother, don't waste your time with someone who does not love you. When we arrived at the hospital this morning with Charlie, Angelina was already there, it made me smile until I remembered that she was not there for me but for Fred. You see, we are in a weird love triangle since the end of our third year, so take my advice in consideration, talk to Hermione and don't waste your time if she doesn't want you. »

« But I love her. » bellowed Ron

« And I am in love with Angelina Johnson who is in love with Fred, my twin, we look exactly the same but the girl doesn't even look at me. Love can be one sided, Ron » said George sadly

« Oh my boys, you will find the right witches for you. But George I did not know that Fred was seeing Angelina again, since when. » asked Molly curious

George shocked his head.

« Oh no Mum, don't make the wedding bells ring just yet, they aren't together as I just said love can be one-sided. Fred is not in love with her, he has only been in love once and it was not Angelina, sorry to break your hopes Mum. » he clarified as he had seen hope in his mother's eyes

« Oh it is alright. Who wants more pie, strawberries anyone. » asked Molly visibly upset about Fred and Angelina

She did not even know which girl her son Fred had been in love with. She fought back the tears because Fred was going to wake up and she was going to get an answer and push Fred to fight for this girl, end of the story.

...

next chapter Hermione will talk to Ron...


	6. Chapter 5

This is chapter 5, one of the longest.

moonfairy13, happy to have you here :)

I am not sure that I will have time to post tomorrow so here are few spoilers.

Fred will wake up around chapter 10. For the next 2/3 chapters, the story will be focused on Ron and Hermione and Hermione thoughts of course. Slowly Fred, even in coma, will be on the front page next to Hermione but I needed first some basis. From the moment that Fred will wake up it is gonna be 100% fremione.

xx

...

Hermione had left Grimmauld Place right after lunch. Andromeda wanted to talk to Harry about Teddy and about the house. She wanted to move in but since the house was Harry's now, they needed to have a little chat.

...

Hermione was quite happy about being alone, she had not been alone for so long. On the subway, on the streets she was like a little girl discovering the city for the first time. She even stopped to buy a bottle of coca cola, last time she had drunk one, she was 16 years old, she was almost 19...

...

When she arrived to St Mungo, the mediwitches let her pass to Fred's room, they made an exception as she was alone. Also, they did not have any badge left so they could not control who was family and who was not yet, though Hermione's brown curls clearly let no doubt about the fact that she was not a Weasley.

...

In front of the door 502, Hermione hesitated. She still had the feeling that she had failed.

But she was not a Gryffindor for nothing, she opened the door that she carefully closed behind her and walked towards the bed.

She observed the young man, he looked peaceful, asleep, absolutely not like someone who was fighting between death and life. She sat on the chair right next to the bed, she thought that she was going to cry but instead of that she smiled.

She was smiling because she was thinking about him, alive, cheerful and devilish as usual. She took his hand in hers.

« Enjoying yourself aren't you, you probably like to have all of us around you, waiting for you to wake up but you know what Fred this joke is not funny. I know that you like dark humor but you can wake up now. You really have to Fred, your family is a mess, we all are and we miss you besides what's the point of staying in this bed, wouldn't you rather be at the shop with George. »

She did not really know what else to say. It was so odd, Fred was the most alive person that she had ever met in her life and seeing him like that was breaking her heart. She took a book out of her purse and started to read out loud, checking every five seconds if Fred was moving.

For Hermione, it was depressing and peaceful at the same time. She was thinking about coming here as much as possible to keep an eye on Fred and to go on with her reflections though she was trying as much as possible to do not think about Fred, could be dangerous. She had never forgotten about their last real conversation at Bill and Fleur's wedding...

...

When George returned to the hospital with Charlie right after eating, they had found Hermione in Fred's room. Before they could asked what she was doing there already, she explained that Andromeda wanted to talk to Harry alone and that since she was already in London, it was easier to come to St Mungo instead of going back to the Burrow.

« You know that Mum doesn't want any of us to travel alone. » reprimanded Charlie

« I do but I am a big girl and I can look after myself. I took the subway, nobody was going to attack me there and I am not scared, I've already seen the worst. »

« Good point Granger. » conceded Charlie and he sat next to George, on the opposite side of Hermione, Fred's bed between them.

...

The others arrived later and none of them spoke during the all afternoon. An heavy silence only interrupted by the visits of the healers and mediwitches.

Finally a bit before 6pm, Bill said that they should leave.

« Mum is expecting us for dinner at 6:30pm. »

Again Ron tried to take Hermione's hands and again she did not let him. He was about to say something while Charlie had passed an arm around his little brother and was whispering in his ear

« Leave her alone, let her be. »

Ron pushed his brother away and walked behind the little group, hurt and annoyed.

...

Right before dinner, Ron finally caught Hermione on the stairs, he told her that he needed to talk to her. He looked so serious that Hermione for a brief moment thought that something had happened, something bad, like Fred dying or worst... Her heart missed few bites at the thought.

Ron had decided to listen to George and to clarify things with Hermione. Something was obviously wrong.

Harry who had been talking about this situation with Hermione and Andromeda during lunch, pushed Hermione to follow Ron. Harry gave her an encouraging smile.

Hermione bit her lips, she was not as optimistic as Harry who believed that Ron would be mad for a day or two and then he would accept the situation and move forward with his life.

It was too soon for them to have that talk. She had no real time to think deeply about how to explain things to Ron and she knew that Ron would only make things worst and enrage her.

But maybe Harry and Andromeda were right and it would only be worst if she waited longer. Truth could be hard and painful but living in a lie was worst.

...

They sat on the bench outside. Hermione was still not really in a good mood to talk, besides she knew that Molly and the rest of the family were probably spying on them. Fred had once told her that it was impossible to have some privacy in this family.

He was damn right, she thought.

On the other side, she knew that it was necessary to root out the evil.

« The sooner, the better. Sooner he knows, sooner he will forgive you. » had said Andromeda

...

Hermione was looking at Ron, waiting for him to talk. He was the one who had requested that talk after all.

He cleared his throat and asked her first why she was avoiding him.

« I am not avoiding you Ron. » sighed Hermione

She rolled her eyes wondering why did it have to be always so complicated with him. Since he had no control over his emotions, talking rationally with him was almost impossible. He was always accusing instead of trying to discuss or to listen to the others.

« Oh really, I must have gone mental then because I am quite sure that you have been doing your best at avoiding me since we came back home yesterday evening, even before that since we've left Hogwarts actually.» he argued

« I am not, really. » she said elusively but the young man was looking at her suspiciously

« Ron, I am just tired and I am not in the mood for one of your scene. » she hoped that it would stop him for the moment.

She was not even lying, she was tired and she could say that Ron was about to loose his temper. She did not want to fight with him but it was too late, he was shooting at her already.

« Not in the mood, what does that mean. Hermione, I thought that you and I, well you know we kissed so, so. »

« We kissed so what. » she snapped with such anger that Ron's eyes widened.

« I don't know, I thought that it had meant something, that we would finally be together, isn't it what you want. »

Oh, oh, here we go, she thought

She knew that this was the reason why he wanted to talk to her.

She looked into his eyes and read pain. She bit her lips. She was still torn between avoiding her feelings or hurting Ron's. Why did love and relationship have to be so complicated, why did she have to picture Ron as her Mr Right. She had created a huge mess to get over the boy for whom she used to have feelings for, a huge mess...

...

« Ron, I, I am sorry. » she croaked

« I know that we kissed, twice but we thought that we were going to die and don't dare to say that this is not the reason why you kissed me because we both know it was. » she warned him

« Agree but that doesn't change anything. We have been foolish for so long and now, now we can finally be together. I wanted to talk to you because I wanted to formally ask you to be my girlfriend » he said resigned

She told him to do not make it more complicated than it already was but he insisted.

« Hermione, do you want to be my girlfriend. » he knew the answer already but he needed her to pronounce the word, to explain herself.

He was hurt because he did believe that she was in love with him, he felt cheated.

...

An eloquent silence set up, it was the translation of their broken hearts.

« Hermione, do you » murmured Ron who was still waiting for an answer.

« I don't know. » her faced was bathed in tears. She did not know what else to say.

Ron stood up and looked at Hermione with a mix of pain and anger.

«You don't know, Hermione seriously, you can't say that right now, I think it is a bit too late for it. »

« No actually, I think it is the right time to say it Ron. And I am sorry but I can't be your girlfriend, at least not now. » she said calmly.

« I thought that you wanted me, I want you. » he affirmed

« I don't know what I want and neither do you. Ron, the war had just ended, I think we both need time to think about what we want to do with our lives, separately. We finally have the chance to live our lives without thinking about Voldemort, Death Eaters or this bloody war and I just don't want to be in a relationship with you right now. » she said looking into Ron's eyes.

He had to understand her, Hermione was convinced that deep down Ron was as lost as she was and he must know that they could not be together, that it did not feel right but she had forgotten that she was speaking with Ron.

« Hermione, I am not asking you to marry me. I am asking you to give me a chance and to be my girlfriend. To date, you know. »

« I am sorry, I can't. It doesn't feel right and I would like to say that it will one day but I am not even sure about that. For now I prefer to be on my own.» she answered firmly

She did not want to act that coldly but Ron was not giving her any other option. And of course, it got worst.

« Who is it. » he asked tartly

« What. » she said incredulous, she must had misunderstood his question.

« Who is the guy that you are dumping me for. »

Hermione rolled her eyes, stood up and went back to the kitchen. She was certainly not going to enter into his game and there was not even a answer to that question. There was nobody else and Ron should have known better than anyone else that she had not met Prince Charming during the hunt...

...

Ron slammed the door of the kitchen behind him and asked her again who was the guy. Everybody stopped eating to look at them, all with a serious feeling of deja vu.

...

Hermione had to talk in front of the all family, which was annoying and embarrassing. She had to make an effort to control her words but it was complicated. It always was with Ron and his emotions.

Two of the reasons why she had realized that she did not want to be with him were his reactions, and their never ending fights, this was not how she was imagining an adult relationship between two people in love with each other.

« You're crazy, we just fought in one of the worst battle of the wizarding world and you just jumped to the conclusion that I am in love with someone else as if this was the only reason why I would turn you down. Doesn't it occur to you that maybe I need time to reflect on my own life. I spent the last 10 months hidding in a tent, eating mushrooms and waking up every morning thinking that it was going to be the last day of my life, that we were going to fail, that Voldemort was going to win. »

Ron interrupted her

« But don't you like me. »

« I do like you but I am not quite sure that I like you the way I thought I did. » she said looking into his eyes

« That doesn't make any sense. You are just an insensitive catty. » barked Ron

Molly stopped him from saying more.

Angry, Ron left the kitchen saying that he was not hungry. Molly turned and looked at Hermione with a smile. She told her that liking someone was a good to start for a relationship

« You don't wake up being in love with someone Dear. Love needs time to grow. You and Ron are so perfect for each other, we all know that you two are going to end up together anyway. It makes sense Hermione, everybody agrees on it. »

Suddenly Hermione felt an urgent need of screaming. This was precisely the reason why she did not want to be with Ron because this was what everybody expected, included her, but it did not mean that it was right.

She had pictured herself with Ron without thinking further, without thinking about love and after what she had seen yesterday, the amount of dead, the broken couples, families, she could not stop thinking about her own feelings for Ron and she was pretty sure that what she was feeling was not love.

Being with Ron would be adequate, practical and expected but without sparks. Hermione wanted sparks and not because of Ron's jealousy. She wanted something strong, passionate and even consuming but emotions not provoked by jealousy or anger. She wanted a relationship as she had dreamed of to have, often, with a certain boy during her fifth year at Hogwarts.

She did not want an ordinary love story, she needed something deep, strong that would make her heart stopped or beaten uncontrollably fast. She wanted someone with whom she would not be constantly arguing and fighting, someone who would not make her feel that she had to control everything all the time, someone who would not need to put her down and she was ready to bet that Ron would never fit the description.

« I know and Mrs Weasley please don't get me wrong but I don't think there are sparks between Ron and I. I like him but I don't think this is enough. »

« Mum don't cry, don't tell me that you seriously believed that they would end up together. » said Bill

« Come on Mum, they would kill each other after a week. » added Charlie

Hermione appreciated the help of Bill and Charlie. Relieved she was to learn that not all the Weasleys had bet that she would end up with Ron.

Molly glared at her eldest sons before to get her attention back to Hermione

« Well Dear, please, at least think about it. » begged Molly

« I will, I just need a bit of time to think all by myself. »

« Of course Hermione, I understand and so will Ron, you know how he is, he will come around. Hermione love is complicated but don't run away from it. » advised the matriarch

« This is not what I am doing Mrs Weasley. I wish I could be with him but I really can't. »

« Don't worry Mum, now that the war is over Fleur and I will work on your grandchildren. » said Bill who did not want his mother to start arguing with Hermione.

He considered Hermione as a little sister and he was one of the Weasleys with Fred and Ginny who did bet that Hermione would never marry Ron. He could not explain why, they just did not fit.

Pleased by Bill's comment, Molly forgot about Hermione and Ron for a moment.


	7. Chapter 6

Here is chapter 6.

Thanks ladies for all your little words :)

LadyoftheNorthernLights welcome :)

And please do not worry to much about Ron. He is gonna be fine ;)

next chapter tomorrow or on Monday

xx

...

Thursday 7th of May, the burrow

Molly, was in her kitchen preparing breakfast. She was waiting for everybody to be up as she had decided to define a schedule with the rest of the family to always have someone at St Mungo with Fred, to always have at least two persons attending the funerals of the day and of course to always have someone available for the Order.

It had been almost a week already and it was time to go back to real life. Percy, Arthur and Bill had to get back to work the day before already. However, they were all going to attend Severus' feneral on the following day and Remus&Tonk's funeral the day after Severus'.

Her main preoccupation was her son, Fred, she did not want him to be alone when he was going to wake up so she was praying for him to do not choose Friday or Saturday afternoon to come back to life. She knew her son, he was quite capable of something like that just to make them feel terrible for leaving him alone. She was missing him so much, like the rest of the family, but she was confident, Fred was not going to die.

Even if Healer in Chief Thomas was still very sceptical about Fred, Molly had decided to ignore him. For her, Healer Thomas was an impervious idiot which had made everybody giggled, even George had smiled.

...

Healer in Chief Thomas still could not understand how Fred had survived. He knew that some spells could keep a connection between the brain and the heart but he did not know a single witch or wizard who could have casted it correctly or perfectly on time.

He had been expecting Fred's heart to stop during the first 24 hours but Fred's heart was getting stronger and had not stopped at any moment, so he had sent an owl during the night to the Weasleys, letter that Molly had found when she had gone downstairs a bit before 6:30am, to inform them that since that it looked like Fred was not going to join the dead, they were going to start the healing treatments.

He had added that the Weasleys and only the Weasleys, Hermione and Harry were excluded from the list, could visit from 8am until 8pm and that the rest of the visitors could visit from 8am to noon and then from 2pm until 6pm.

Molly was sure that Hermione was going to complain about the visiting hours since she had been spending almost as much time as George over the last 48 hours at the hospital, something that Molly disliked very much. The matriarch was worried, Hermione seemed so concerned about Fred and so distant with the rest of them. Hermione had talked to her once. And it was only because she wanted to know if they had seen her cat. Hermione was like George, in her world, but for Molly, George had a good reason to be like that while Hermione did not because as far as she knew Fred and Hermione were barely friends.

Hermione and Ron were still not talking and Molly was starting to worry about the big wedding that she had been preparing, in her head, since Ron had come back from the school after his first year.

She was hoping that Hermione and Ron would be in a better mood when they had arrived downstairs almost at the same time however as the first thing, that they had done, had been to glare at each other, Molly's hopes had vanished away again. She looked at them with melancholy and let escape more than a sigh.

She shocked her head and refocused on her mission

« I've been thinking about our schedules. I have to attend funerals and I told Minerva that I will go with her to visit the families of those poor kids who had died. So I am going to take the first shift on the morning, from 8am to 10am, with George. Your father and Percy will go there during their lunch breaks from noon to 2pm, Ron, Ginny, Harry, Hermione you can take the shift of the afternoon and Charlie, Fleur and Bill you can take the last one»

They all replied that they also wanted to attend several funerals so Bill and Charlie suggested that the best would be to decide each morning about the schedule of the day. Molly did not really like the idea, she liked to have things organized but her children weren't kids anymore and she could not always have the last word either she liked it or not.

...

Everybody was talking about the funerals, Hogwarts, the Death Eaters on the run, the nomination of Kingsley as the new Ministry of Magic, temporary but still all the members of the Order were really happy about his nomination.

Harry, who was eating his third sausage, said that he wanted to go with Pr McGonagall, Molly and Kingsley to visit the parents who had lost their children. Molly was against the idea but Arthur understood Harry's motives better and after arguing with his wife, she finally agreed to let Harry to come with them to visit the parents of the students that Harry personally knew like Colin. However, she had refused to let Ginny or Ron, who had also said that they wanted to join them, to come with them.

Hermione had not spoken yet, she was staring at her toast, pretty much like George as if both had been stupefied. They were awfully quiet.

Hermione still could not talk about what had happened. As long as Fred would be in coma, she knew that it would be impossible for her to move forward. She was waiting for him to wake up and it had been almost a week already, the worst week of her life. She could not stop thinking about him. She was desperate to hear his laugh, to listen to his voice again. In a way, she was in coma with him. She could not have failed!

Also, thinking about the funerals was making her sick, all those innocents... at least Fred was not was one of them, it was a little comfort for her, or better said a big one but she would not, she could not say it out loud. Nobody would understand. And she did not want people asking her question about Fred because her feelings weren't resurfacing, no, she could not stop think about him only because she was the one who had a time turner to save his life.

Anyway, she had enough to deal with at the moment.

For instance, she had the feeling that Percy was always observing her. He had not talked to her but Hermione was positive, he knew, he must had seen her. She did not know if the fact that he had not said a word about it was a good or a bad thing.

...

Molly's voice brought her back to reality.

« George, Honey, I know that you don't want to go but you need to go to the shop, to check what's left of it. » said Molly who was looking for a solution to make George coming out of his muteness.

George glared at his mother, he did not care about the shop, without Fred there was no shop, there was not even a George. Unlike his mother, he was still very concerned about Healer in Chief Thomas' first opinion.

Moreover, he was disturbed by the presence of Hermione and her attitude. She was not bothering him, not at all, he was just having doubts that only Fred could resolve about her attitude in general. Fred would have never lied to him about Hermione but still he was wondering why she was spending her days at the hospital or why she was being so harsh with Ron. Fred had told him that Hermione had admitted, at the wedding last year, that she used to have a crush on him, used to and clearly George was not sure about that used to...

...

Bill and Charlie were looking at their brother. They told him that they would all go with him, to Diagon Alley, on the evening to check on the shop. They were encouraging him to do something for both, Fred and himself.

« Come on Georgie, think about the earful that Fred is going to give you when you will tell him that you haven't gone to the shop, that you don't even know if there is still a shop. »

« Bill is right, Fred is gonna be mad. » affirmed Percy

« And when Fred is mad, he thinks too much so if you don't move your arse we are all going to suffer his most devilish pranks at least until Christmas of 2000. » sighed Charlie

« He might even prank you Georgie, imagine. » added Ginny with a smirk

They insisted a bit more and finally George agreed to go with them to the shop on the evening.

Hermione was observing the scene in silence, she never had siblings but wished she had. Without Fred, George felt that his life had no meaning and his other brothers were remembering him that he was not alone, that they were here with him and that he had to think about what Fred would like him to do. She thought about her parents and a feeling of emptiness brought back the tears.

Tears that again no one but Harry understood.

...

On Friday afternoon, they all attended the funeral of Severus even George with whom Molly and Arthur had to fight as he did not want to let Fred unguarded during more than two hours.

On Saturday, they all attented the funeral of Remus and Tonks. It had been a whole week since they had died.

As for Severus, the funeral took place at Hogwarts.

They all cried during the all ceremony. Hermione did not know how but she had found the strengths to read the goodbye letter that she had written for them. Andromeda and Harry had thanked her as both had been unable to speak. Andromeda had hugged Hermione as her mother used to which had awoken the pain in her heart, she was missing her parents so much. Andromeda was a very lovely woman, Hermione was really looking forward to get to know her.

...

They were now all back at the Burrow.

It was after dinner, Hermione was looking for Ron, she had decided that they had to work this out. She had been doing a lot of thinking over the last few days and her ideas were clearer, her mind was lighter and to be able to focus on the future and herself she had to fix things with Ron first, she did not want to loose him, to loose her best friend.

...

in the next chapter it is going to be round 2 of the catfight between Hermione and Ron. and yes chapter 10 Fred will wake up. I've done my cutting.

Andromeda is going to be a very important character. I pictured Kate Winslet for the role.

xx


	8. Chapter 7

Here is chapter 7

mindofaclassic welcome :)

PepperAnn11 welcome :)

RG MsRogue welcome

and another welcome for sitaemme :)

I am so happy to have you here. Let me know what you think of this new chapter.

and if there is any volunteer for a beta let me know :)

xx

...

The Burrow

Hermione had found Ron in his room, it was still early, not even 10pm but he had gone straight to bed after dinner. He had said that he was tired. He had not fooled anyone though, they all knew that he was still hurt.

He was laying on his bed, looking at the ceiling, that still had several posters of the Cannons. He clearly had been lying about going to sleep as he was not even wearing his pajamas yet.

« Hey Ron. May I talk to you. » she asked after he had told her to come inside.

The fact that he had not told her to get lost was a good sign for her but maybe she was wrong...

« I suppose. » he replied

He had not even bothered to look at her yet.

...

She walked into the room, towards the bed. She did not even know if she should sat on the bed or stay up. Nervous, she finally sat at the end of the bed as far as possible from Ron, who was now sat at the head of the bed on the orange pillows.

She observed him for few seconds, she did not know how to start without entering into a fight.

She told him that she had been honest with him the other day and insisted on the fact that she was lost.

« I am not ready Ron, I don't want to be in a relationship. I need time to think, to reflect about my life. » she said very carefully

He objected, of course. He said that he could wait until she was ready. She shocked her head and replied that this was not the problem and she added that he should not pined for something that was not going to happen. She told him that he was not understanding her point of view only because he was hurt.

« But soon you will see that I was right and that we, you and I don't fit. It would be an unhealthy relationship. Ron, we always bring out the worst of the other. I am sorry that I hadn't realized sooner, I did not mean to hurt you. Ron, you are my best friend and our friendship means the world to me, I don't wanna loose my best friend. » she said with tears in her eyes but she only got a death stare.

« You are cheeky you know, acting as if I was the worst prat on earth, because of whom you've always ended up in tears, when you were just playing with me. I am not perfect but I've never played with your feelings» he replied aggressively

« It is not totally true Ron, you've always managed to hurt my feelings and no, I've never played with your feelings. I was just wrong about mine. » she snapped back violently.

She was not going to be the one to blame, certainly not.

« Have it your way Ron. » she sighed

They glared at each other.

...

Hermione stood up and once she was very close to the door she added.

« Being with you seemed right but I was wrong. I had decided that you would be the one but I had never thought further than that. I had never really thought deeper about my feelings for you or if we could really last because my mind was focused on this bloody war and now for the first time in years, I have the chance to think only about myself and I am doing a lot of thinking and you and I, it just doesn't feel right. I did a mistake and I really am sorry.»

« How can you said that, we haven't even tried. At least lets give us a shot. » objected a desperate Ron

« I am sorry Ron. I need to piece myself back together first. Don't wait for me, I am not the one for you and you aren't the one for me either. We don't match. A lovely girl is waiting for you outside but I am not this girl, sorry » she said sadly

She opened the door and left his room. She had nothing else to say. She had apologized that was the most important. She had to be patient now and wait for Ron to accept the situation.

At least that was what she had been thinking before Ron had caught her arm in the middle of the stairs. He looked so angry, if a gaze could kill, she would be dead.

« I don't believe your pathetic excuse, I still think there is someone else, I am pretty sure it is one of my brothers though I have no clue which one it is between Fred, Percy and Charlie. I do even consider George. »

They were in the middle of the stairs, Hermione looked extremely nervous, she did not want the Weasleys to be the witnesses of another pathetic scene.

« Feel free to think whatever you want Ron. It doesn't matter what I will say, you won't listen to me anyway, so go on with your fantastic script. » she whispered

« Take me crazy. I am not mad, I just haven't figured out which one it is yet. »

« Send me a copy when it is done because apparently I am missing a torrid love affair with one of your brothers. » she replied still in a low voice while Ron's was becoming louder and louder as if he wanted the all house to listen to him.

« Torrid love affair my ass, you are a virgin and everybody knows that and my brothers, they all know that too and that you are a prude and none of them want you. I would have waited you know. My brothers, they certainly won't. If it is Charlie, well I think Dragons have more chance than you. George, he is in love with Angelina but you are good with polyjuice, aren't you. Fred is a manipulative git, the devil with the smile of an angel and Percy well he is a bookworm and a rules lover, who knows maybe that one could work but again loosing your time. He is still in love with Penelope as far as I know. At least, they are all single, you can try them all and then throw them away or make an orgy. Quite sure Fred and George have done one already, they share everything you know and with Fred twisted mind it will be explosive.» exploded Ron smirked

After that one, Hermione expected redheads to pop around but no one showed up. They were certainly all listening but they were probably thinking that it was something between her and Ron and that it was better to do not take a side though she was pretty sure that Molly was ready to intervene if needed.

Ron's words hurt so much but she was not going to let him win, she was not going to cry in front of him one more time. Also, she was amazed, and not in a good way, by Ron' speech about his brothers.

« Such a lovely family portrait you are painting here. I am sure your brothers would love it, specially Fred, twisted mind, manipulator, git. He is in coma Ron and he might never wake up how can you talk like that. I swear if you bite your tongue, you would poison yourself. Fred is your brother, not any next door neighbors.» she said horrified

« So it's him, I knew it, I knew it was him. » barked Ron who did not care if his entire family was listening. He was blinded by rage. Again, he was the third wheel, again one of his brothers had gotten something that he wanted.

He smirked before to add.

« I heard you once babbling about him with Ginny when we were staying at Grimmauld Place. I know that you had a crush on him. Funny thing you can learn by using those extendable ears. »

She let out a gasp, he knew, he had known all this time. She could not believe it, she wanted to disappear.

His grip on her arms tightened

« So Mione tell me which one of my brothers do you think is the most attractive Ginny asked you laughing. You were giggling like an idiot and you made her swear to do not tell anyone, she promised of course and then you said loud and clear, Fred. » he started

And he was not done yet. He wanted her to feel as miserable as he was feeling.

« You're pathetic Mione but I reckon that getting the bookworm into his bed could be a nice bet for Fred, see you might be lucky and ending up having sex at least once in your life. Come on Mione, have the guts to admit that it's him.»

She slapped him.

He had not seen it coming and he had automatically released her arm. This one had hurt, not the gesture but its meaning.

Hermione gulped, she was shocked by own gesture. She had not been able to control her gesture. Ron had worn her out with his accusations.

« Red handed Hermione. And you thought that I did not know. Well did nobody ever tell you that there is no privacy in this house or in the Weasley family. Good luck with him. » said a disgusted Ron.

« That was two damn years ago Ron. » she yelled back

« So you don't deny it. » He said redder than before

She frowned and replied

« You know what. »

« No, what, enlighten me. » he shouted interrupting her

She shocked her head.

« Never mind, I would be wasting my time. I am tired, I need to sleep. I have to go back to the hospital early tomorrow morning.»

« Yes go back to your precious sleeping beauty. Why don't you try to kiss him, who knows he might wake up. Oh no wait sorry, only works if it is true love and you, Hermione and Fred will never be a true love story, never. Fred and George call you perfect Prefect and bushy egghead on your back. Fred even said once that he would prefer to kiss a murtlap. I bet you did not know that. » he said fiercely

« I did not know that you had been eating Malfoy for dinner. » she replied but it was too late, Ron had won, she was crying.

She pushed him away and ran to Ginny's room.

She was hurt but not because of Ron's words. It hurt because Fred had said them, because Ron had just exposed her in front of everybody, even if they were alone, the house was too calm and Hermione knew that they all had been listening each word of their fight.

She knew that Ron could be lying but in case he wasn't, Hermione knew that it would really hurt her and not because she had used the time turner to save Fred's arse but because she did have a really strong crush, more than that actually, on him during her fifth year and it took her a damn all summer to forget about him.

Funny fact was that it was just after that summer that she had started to question her feelings for Ron, thinking that he must be the one for her, that if people were expecting them to end up together it probably meant something.

Ron gad gone back to his room but an arm had stopped him before he could open the door.

« If Fred was here, he would have killed you. I am not Fred and I am not going to touch you but if you ever hurt her again, I swear that not even Mum will recognize you oh my Dear little brother. Capich. »

« And why would the git kill me. » asked Ron incredulous almost laughing.

He added.

« Fred could not care less about a fight between Hermione and I. »

« Ron, I am serious, leave her alone. »

Not impressed at all Ron looked into his brother's eyes.

« No, you leave me alone, do I mind your own damn business, I don't think so. »

As expected he got no answer

« Another red handed for tonight, now go take a hike. » he opened the door of his room and slammed the door at his brother's face.

...

As for Hermione, she was in her bed crying. She had to find a way to know if Ron had lied or not. She had to find out as soon as possible even if it was going to break her heart.


	9. Chapter 8

Here is chapter 8.

Next chapter will be on Saturday.

zipeda welcome :)

ShatteredDollxo welcome :)

charlieangel97 welcome :)

ItzelNox welcome :)

LASangel welcome :)

and finally welcome to nette91

thanks fantasygirl20, moonfairy13 and sitaemme for your comments. Ron won't be the vilain, don't worry about him. Let's say that he had to react like that to make others think about Hermione and Fred like Molly who is going to be, for a while, against Hermione and Fred, a first inside in this chapter.

Let me know your thoughts

xx

...

On Sunday morning Hermione woke up early, it was not even 7am yet. Carefully, she took clean clothes and went to the bathroom. She did not want to wake up Ginny, who had gone to bed really late.

Ginny and Harry were officially a couple and they were spending a lot of time together. Hermione had even caught them snogging in Fred's room, at the hospital, a couple of days ago. She was really happy for her only real girl friend and the person that she considered as her brother. Of course, Mrs and Mr Weasleys had reminded them the rules of the house but none of them really cared as seeing Harry and Ginny happy together was the only positive novelty. With Fred still in coma and with no sign of awakening the Burrow was, often, plunged in a deep and morbid silence.

...

After taking a quick shower, Hermione briefly looked at herself in the mirror. She was thinking about cutting her hair. She had read once, a long time ago, that when women needed a change in their lives, a new haircut was always the first step and she definitely needed a change. Fleur had given her few products to take care of her mop of hair but Hermione still had the feeling to have curly straw instead of hair.

She sighed, she was trying to do not think about Ron's words but they had hurt so much. They had let a deep wound in her heart. She dried, with her thumbs, the few tears that she had let escaped and went downstairs.

...

She went to the kitchen, only Molly and George were already up. She knew that her eyes were still red and swollen but neither George or Molly said anything about her look.

She ate breakfast in silence without looking at any of them. A bit later, Percy and Charlie joined them, again they looked with attention at her but did not make any comment and the same happened with Mr Weasley.

...

Hermione wanted to leave the burrow as soon as possible, she was very uncomfortable and she did not want to see Ron, Ginny or Harry. Ginny and Harry would not stay mute and she did not want them to question her.

...

A bit before 8am, George said that he was leaving. As usual Molly told him that he could not leave alone. As Hermione was the only one ready and she could not wait to escape, she said that she was going to go with George.

Molly argued that it did not make any sense because of the visiting hours that Healer in Chief Thomas had defined for them.

« They don't have the badges yet and the mediwitches are letting me pass, I wanted to go early anyway as I have things to do in London after. » lied Hermione, she had nothing to do in London

Arthur did not let his wife replied and told Hermione that she could go with George.

« George, your mother and I will come before lunch. Hermione, see you later. If there is anything, let us know, we will be there in a minute. »

...

Relieved Hermione followed George outside to apparate next to St Mungo. The landing place was not far from St Mungo, a bit more than 5 minutes walk.

As they were walking on the street, few numbers ahead of St Mungo, George asked her if she was ok.

Surprised by his question as he usually did not talk to her, she looked into his eyes confused.

She had spent countless hours with him at the hospital over the last few days and he had never said a word. She supposed that he had heard her and Ron fighting the night before though it did not explain why he suddenly cared about her.

She bit her lips, she was thinking about asking him if Ron had been lying or not. She did not know if George was going to tell her the truth or not, in the end she was friend with Fred but with George it was different. She considered him as a friend of course but she was not sure that she could call him her friend.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she had forgotten to reply and George was frowning suspiciously. She noticed so she told him that she was fine. He shocked his head and said that he was not. He told her that he was loosing hope, that he was missing his twin so badly, that he did not know how to go on with his life without him... For about 15 minutes the redhead opened his heart to Hermione.

Touched by his confession, she comforted him and told him that Fred was going to wake up.

« For you George, he will. »

George hugged her, something he had never done before and thanked her for listening. He added that she should not listened to Ron when he was barking, never. She smiled at him and he smiled back and together they opened the door of the room 502, where nothing had changed...

...

...

When Hermione went back to the Burrow on the evening, Molly was alone in the kitchen, preparing dinner. It was smelling really good however Hermione had started to feel nauseous the moment that she had stepped into the kitchen.

Being alone with Molly was intimidating. Hermione was not scared of Molly but she had the feeling that Molly was going to take advantage of the situation and talk to her about Ron. She did not want to talk with Molly about her and Ron. Also, she did not want to imagine what Molly could tell her if she had listened, which she probably had, the day before, on the evening, the raw between her and Ron.

...

Molly greeted her with a smile and asked her where she had been as they had not seen her since she had left right after breakfast.

« I'd been at the hospital, George is still there by the way. He is with Lee and Katie. They want to take him out for dinner later. He told me to let you know. » said Hermione without looking at the matriarch.

« Oh alright, I am glad that he is finally getting out of his transe. Have you been at the hospital all day again, have you been eating something. » asked Molly innocently

Hermione told her that she had met Andromeda at the hospital and had stayed with her for lunch and part of the afternoon before to head back to the hospital, which was true.

...

Andromeda had decided to stay in London, at least for a while and Harry had gently offered her to stay at . She had accepted his offer and was already working on the restauration of the old house. Kreatur had chosen to stay with Andromeda, it had surprised everybody except Hermione who was sure that the elf would never leave the house, never.

When Andromeda had seen Hermione at the doors of St Mungo, she had automatically understood that something was wrong with the young witch and had not let her buy a sandwich at the cafeteria. She had not given her any option and had told her to go with her for lunch. Andromeda was very perceptive and also very empathic and she always found a way to make Hermione speak. Hermione did not know Andromeda very well but she had the feeling that she could trust the older woman.

Andromeda was a good listener and she was never making more than few comments which was a plus as the young witch had not the feeling to be judged. She had told her to forget about Ron's words and Ron in general, adding that the best thing that Hermione could do was to ignore him. She knew that it was easy to say and not that easy to do but she had made Hermione promised to do not let Ron's words affecting her that much anymore.

...

...

After few minutes of questioning about her day, Hermione was trying to find a way to escape but Molly was not letting her. Hermione asked where the others were just to know if she was really alone with the matriarch or not. Molly nodded.

« Quidditch, all of them. I needed a moment for myself so they are all outside playing. Arthur is with Percy in his paradise of Muggle's artefacts. They are looking at a lamp, that is also a fountain and it is working without electricity, can you believe it. » said Molly who was still acting innocently.

« Oh it probably works with a battery. » murmured the young witch who was getting more and more nervous. She was not stupid, she knew that Molly had trapped her.

Molly frowned and asked what was a battery.

« Nothing, I will explain this mystery to your husband later. Now, I will go upstairs unless you need help. » replied Hermione, her eyes finally meeting Molly's

« I do not need help Hermione but I would like to talk to you. I've been for days but I've never found the right moment. Take a sit Dear please, tea, coffee. »

« No thanks, I am fine. I've been drinking diet coke all day. » replied Hermione blushing. The knot in her stomach was back.

Molly asked what was that but Hermione eluded the question. She was not in the mood, she wanted to end this conversation as soon as possible and take a shower to forget about what was for sure going to be a not so lovely chat...

Molly started by saying that she had, indeed, heard them, her and Ron, the day before. She was looking at Hermione in a very suspicious way and the young witch was wondering if Molly was going to take Ron' side and blamed her. It would not surprised her at all. But somehow what Molly asked her, disconcerted her even more.

« Is that true. »

« I am sorry Mrs Weasley but what do you mean. » asked a really confused Hermione

Molly frowned and asked Hermione if Ron had said the truth about her feelings for Fred. Hermione raised her gaze to met Molly's again.

« He was not lying, when I was younger, a couple of years ago I did have feelings for Fred but nothing ever happened between us, back then Fred did not even know. I did not know that Ron knew. I only told Ginny once. Nobody else knew except my parents. » explained Hermione who saw no reason to lie.

« Hermione, see there is one thing, I really love you as a daughter nevertheless I will never accept a woman that could sow discord in my family. I am not saying that this is what you are doing, you don't choose who you fall for but I just want to make it clear, I don't want my sons to fight for you. I can understand that you don't want to be with Ron but Hermione, if you don't want to be with him because you want to be with Fred, I am sorry but this is not going to work, at least not under this roof. Fred and Ron are always fighting, they are the ones who fight the most and you are not going to be one of their already many subjects of discord. » affirmed a very serious Molly

Pale and astounded Hermione repeated that nothing had ever happened with Fred. Molly took Hermione's hands in hers.

« I know but Ron was right yesterday when he told you that Fred could see a good bet in you. He loves to play and he unfortunately does play with people's feelings too. I don't want him to hurt you to take the Mickey out of Ron, one more time. We don't need two broken hearts. I don't want you to be hurt either. » thwarted Molly

Annoyed by Molly's words, Hermione said that she did not think that Fred could do something like that. She added that he had never even pranked her but Molly argued that she knew her son better than her. And she insisted on the fact Hermione should not go after Fred, that it could not end well. Hermione with the same tone replied that she had no intention to go after Fred and Molly counterattacked by asking the young woman why she was spending do much time at the hospital then.

Hermione sighed.

« Because when I am there, I am in peace with myself. I know that Ron is not going to come for me, wasting his time nitpiking instead of acting as an adult. »

Molly did not let her finish

« You both need to grow up Hermione but you had been through so much so I won't tell you what to do or not. » retorted the matriarch

« with the exception of my feelings but don't worry Mrs Weasley, I've got the message. I won't sow discord. » responded Hermione sharply

She was disgusted and Molly had noticed.

« Hermione, I am sorry but they are my sons and only flighty women go after two brothers. You have the right to disagree but as long as you are living under our roof you are going to follow our rules. And don't worry, I will talk to Ron. » smiled Molly who did not want Hermione to be upset.

She had just wanted to warn her, made her understand that Fred would never be a good match for her. From Molly's point of view, Fred would never love Hermione. Hermione could not possibly be Fred's type, she was picturing him with someone less cold, less serious, less know-it-all, less Hermione...

« May I leave now, I would like to take a shower before dinner. » said Hermione who was making an effort to do not burst into tears

« Of course Dear. » replied an embarrassed Molly

« Hermione please don't be mad at me. One day, you are going to have children and you will understand. It is hard you know to see your children fighting all the time. Fred and Ron have an heavy past there is no need to add more. You are worth the fight, you really are but the own good of my family is more important than you. » finished Molly upset

« I understand, I do really. And don't worry, I don't have feelings for Fred anymore, I care about him as a friend that's all. » replied Hermione calmly

« That's a good thing Honey. I know that he is an attractive young man but he is not right for you.» insisted Molly

After that one, Hermione left the table.

This had hurt even more than Ron's words. She knew that she should not listen to Mrs Weasley but it hurt so much. She had the feelings that the Fred that they were talking about was not the Fred that she knew. Of course, she knew that the young man had his flaws, many, but he was always so nice to her. It was true that she had sometimes wondered why he was so nice to her and so evil with others like Ron or even Neville but she had never seen him as the devil that they were all describing.

She could not picture him using her just to upset Ron. Fred was not Malfoy, she was sure that he would never do such thing but they had managed to make her doubts and now she did not know what to think about the last conversation that she had with him. She had exposed her feelings and she had believed him when he had told her that he did have a crush on her too, but now she was having doubts.

Andromeda had told her to have a little chat with George and she clearly had no more option left. George was the only one who could help her and give her the anseer that she wanted, perhaps even more than Fred himself.

...

next chapter on saturday with a lot of things.

three spoilers, a chat between George and Hermione. The presence of Angelina Johnson and Harry and Ron joining the aurors.


	10. Chapter 9

Here is chapter 9.

only one more chapter and Fred will be out of coma, finally.

Lizairy Cullen, you can be mad at Molly. She is gonna be the main problem for Fred and Hermione, at least until she gets that they truly love each other.

Welcome kk1999 :)

Welcome Fluffbutt85 :)

and welcome kittie night :)

next chapter will be Tuesday. And I am giving you two spoilers about next chapter

there is indeed going to be a storyline about the time turner and we will have the first insight of it and also Harry and Ron will start the aurors' training and we will see why Hermione does not want to become an auror.

let me know your thoughts about this one.

xx

...

Monday 11th of May

After a rough night, Hermione had no energy to get out of her bed. She was not feeling sad or guilty anymore, she was feeling lonely and locked up. She had nowhere to go, she could go back to her parents house but with Death Eaters like Dolohov and Rookwood on the run, it was dangerous. Moreover, she did not even know if she still had a house, maybe it had been destroyed, it was a fair possibility.

She was feeling the headache coming and it was not even 7:30am yet.

Ginny had been questioning her for a while this morning already before to, finally, give up.

...

Ginny did not know how to help her best friend, she had spoken about it with Harry but none of them had been able to find a real solution. It was so frustrating. And this morning had not given more results. Hermione was still not in the mood to let them in.

Harry had tried to make Ron understand the situation but the redhead was so stubborn and he was, indeed, so convinced that Hermione had been playing with his feelings, so sure that Hermione, the girl that he loved and wanted, still had feelings for his own brother that it was infuriating him even more.

The new couple was trying to bring some peace but it was complicated. The fact that Hermione was almost not speaking with any of them was not helping either. Hermiome was leaving right after breakfast and coming back only for dinner. Harry was seeing Hermione often at Grimmauld Place when he was going there for lunch but he was not luckier there.

They knew that she had mentioned several times that she needed time to think but they would have never thought that she would exclude them from her life.

However, this morning, when Ginny had noticed that Hermione was still in bed when she had awoken, she knew that something must had happened. She had tried in vain to get an answer but Hermione could be as stubborn as Ron when she wanted...

...

Ginny was still looking at Hermione. She told her that she was hungry and that they should go downstairs. She added that her and Fleur wanted to go shopping. They needed new clothes and both believed that Hermione should come with them.

«Why don't you come with us. Buying you some new clothes would not be a bad idea. Luna might come too. I don't mind you borrowing mine but. »

Hermione interrupted her. She knew what Ginny was doing.

« I don't have money for new clothes. Ginny, I told you already, I don't have access to my muggle bank account anymore and my vault at Gringotts is almost empty. I wanna save what's left for my supplies for school. » said Hermione coldly

...

She was not lying. Before to leave her house and erase her parents' memories, she had taken her money out of her vault at Gringotts, letting only the minimum requirement. She had placed the money on her muggle bank account but she had forgotten that she was only seventeen years old when she had done that which meant that she was underage for the Muggles and her bank account had disappeared with the memories of her parents.

She had been at the bank twice already. She was never at the hospital when Ron or Molly were about to arrive and she was using this time to get her life back but unfortunately there was no trace of any Hermione Granger at the bank or anywhere else in the Muggles' world.

...

« Harry could. » started Ginny before to be interrupted again

« Ginny, I am not going to ask Harry to lend me some money. He had done enough for me already. I will wait few more days and then I will try to find a job. Besides, I have enough clothes » affirmed the brunette

« Few more days, do you mean until Fred. »

Again the brunette interrupted the redhead.

« Ginny, please not you. » replied Hermione and she sighed annoyingly

« I haven't said anything Mione. And personally I don't care about it. I just don't think that spending your days at the hospital aren't helping you to move on with your life. Even George is kind of more alive than you. » replied Ginny sharply

« I am not there all day. And believe it or not but going to the hospital is actually helping me a lot. It is quiet there. I can think and I've already figured out a lot. Like the fact that I don't want to be with Ron. I don't love him and I wanna go back to school for my last year, pass my NEWTS and get a job at the ministry at the department of the magical Law Enforcement. » said Hermione less nervously, she even smiled at Ginny.

« You sure you are alright. » asked Ginny concerned.

Ginny wanted the old Hermione back even if Hermione had already told her that this Hermione was gone and that she seriously doubted that she could ever become that person again. Hermione did not know if she wanted to be that person again because she was not sure that her old self was her true self.

« I am working it Gin. Don't worry about me and since I am sure that you've heard my fight with your Ron, the answer is no. I don't have feelings for Fred anymore. I care about him, a lot, and I do have my own reasons for spending so much time at the hospital but it has nothing to do with romantic feelings. » affirmed Hermione

« If you say so, I believe you then but I repeat, I don't care. If you still have feelings for Fred then tell him as soon as he is awake. I am quite sure that he did have feelings for you too. » smiled Ginny

Uncomfortable with Ginny's last sentence, Hermione got out of bed and said that they should go downstairs.

Ginny followed her friend without adding anything. Andromeda had told Harry that Hermione needed time and she was certainly right nevertheless Ginny had the feeling that Hermione was hiding something. She did not know what it was but she had to find out. Hermione could not be acting that oddly just because of the war, there was something else.

...

After that morning talk, Hermione went on with her routine except for one thing. The hospital had finally gotten the new badges and Hermione had lied about her status to get a family badge so she could still stay at the hospital until 8pm.

The mediwitch had not doubted, not even for a second about the status that Hermione had claimed. She had given the badge to Hermione telling her to have faith. Instinctively, Hermione had wrapped her hand around the time turner that was still around her neck, hidden, under her light blue jumper. She had offered a smile to the mediwitch before to leave to the room 502.

And since she did not want to be near Molly or Ron, she was still there at 6pm when George came back.

She was reading out loud, as usual, when George had stepped into the room. She was reading Charlie and the chocolate factory, she believed that Fred would love the book and she was secretly praying that it would bring him back to life. His devilish mind thinking about the products that they could invent thanks to this story. But nothing was happening as usual.

She had raised her gaze from her book and had greeted George with a weak smile.

...

George had been gone the all afternoon. He had been cleaning the shop with the help of Charlie, Lee, Verity and Katie. They had forced him to do it and to reopen very soon.

The shop had not been totally destroyed, moreover, Fred and George had moved their stocks to a secret place, right before to go hiding with the rest of their family, that only themselves knew, which meant that George had enough products left to reopen the shop without any problem. He did not want to but his siblings had pushed him to reopen on the following week as they were all convinced that by then Fred would have awoken. No one believed that Fred could stay more than two weeks in coma.

...

Hermione was observing George. He had sat on the chair next to hers and had smiled at her. She had frowned instead of smiling back. She was trying to hide the badge from his sight, if he did not see it, he would not ask her anything.

He surprised her when he asked her directly which badge she had managed to get to be able to stay at the hospital after 6pm. She blushed deeply, she was so embarrassed because she had not thought about the fact that maybe the badge belonged to someone already or that George could start to see her as a flighty woman too, just like his mother.

« Come on Granger, it cannot be that terrible. I understand that you want to stay away from the Burrow after the lovely chat that you had with Ron and the horrible things that my mother had told you but the title on your badge can't be that bad that you cannot showed it to me. »

Hermione's eyes were wide opened. She asked him how he had learnt about the chat that she had with his mother. He grinned.

« Easy, you remember our summer at Grimmauld Place, when our extendable ears were not working. »

She nodded.

« Well Fred and I had been working on new ones that could work even with the most powerful imperturbable charm and of course since we are genius, we got the right formula. » explained George proudly

Hermione was not surprised to hear that, she knew that they were very talented wizards and that they were always working on new products but still that did not explain how.

« Don't make me rush Granger, we still have two damn hours before to go home. Anyway, I heard Mum and Dad last night, they were fighting but I could not listen properly so I used one of those wonderful ears and I heard Dad telling Mum that she should not have talked to you like that and then well you know my mother, she played the scene all over again and that's how I learnt about those lovely things that she told you about Fred. »

Hermione felt trapped again because she could not say if George was thinking like his mother or not. It looked like he was amused by his mother's words and Hermione did not know what to think about George's poker face. She sighed and reluctant gave him the badge, if George was going to give her the act number III, of The Weasleys' Melodrama, she preferred to be done with it as soon as possible.

George looked at the badge and laughed, for the first time in 10 days, when he read the black letters. He looked into Hermione's eyes and his laughed intensified.

Frustrated and ashamed Hermione took the badge from his hand and perplexed she asked him what was so funny.

« Mum's face when she is going to see it. You need to hide that thing from her sight Hermione. » replied George who was already picturing his mother's face.

« So you aren't mad at me and I am not taking anybody's place, right. » asked Hermione in a befuddled state of mind

« Well after 10 days don't you think that it would be about time for a girlfriend to show up. » said George who had stopped laughing

Hermione shrugged, what was she supposed to say anyway.

« You can keep it. When I saw you, I knew that you must had asked for this one. It is fine really, we are both, Fred and I awfully singles and who knows maybe that's going to bring him back to life. Not so long ago, he would have killed all of us, except me and you of course, just to call you his girlfriend. » George confessed with no smile on his face

Hermione turned crimson but did not reply.

...

They both looked at Fred for a while without speaking.

...

Hermione was thinking about the conversation that she had with Andromeda.

She moved her chair closer to George's and she asked him if what Ron had said was true. George, without looking at her, said that he was the one who had said that he would prefer to kiss a murtlap. It was his turn to blush. Hermione could not remember the last time that she had seen one of the twins blushed of embarrassment, oh right she could not remember because it had never happened before.

However, he confirmed that both had used the two nicknames. He finally turned and looked at her.

« We called you bushy egghead during the first years, until you got petrified actually, never called you that again and I know it is not an excuse but almost all the gryffindor were calling you like this. »

« And the other one, you can't say that it was from years ago. » she retorted while she was trying to ignore the pain in her chest.

« Well it actually was Hermione. »

« Don't Hermione me. » she snapped which made George chuckled

« It was not in a bad way. Fred name you like that because for him you were perfect. I don't know what you did to him but he really liked you Hermione. Lee did not know about Fred's feelings for you so he misunderstood it but not Angelina. You can ask her if you dare, she got what Fred meant. »

Hermione did not understand why George was suddenly mentioning Angelina Johnson or Lee but she had too much in her head and thinking about the beautiful Angelina was not going to help her to clarify her ideas.

She had met the Harpies' chaser a couple of times in Fred's room and each time, she had gotten the impression that Angelina did not want to be in the same room with her.

« I am not going to run after people just to get, forget it George, I should not have listened to Ron. I am sorry for bothering you with my question. You must think that I am selfish, I am not, I am sorry. »

« It is ok Perfect Prefect. It was not a double meaning. Fred meant it, I swear and by the way, he would never do anything to hurt you, never. Ron is Ron, you know how he is but he will come around and apologize, I hope. And I hope for him that Fred is never going to learn what he had told you otherwise he is going to strangle him. As for my mother, I want to apologize. She should not have talked to you like that but the apple never falls far from the tree and at the moment she is just mad because you had destroyed the wedding that she had been planning for years but like Ron she will come around » explained George calmly

« I believe you George but how can you be so calm after what she had said about Fred» asked Hermione disconcerted

« We aren't Saints. She has her own reasons just like you, for sure, have your own reasons to come here everyday and spend more time than the rest of the family to Fred's bedside. You know the rules of the game, don't ask me question and I won't either, just believe me, Fred would never do anything like that to you, never.»

He shocked his head and said that he had forgotten the most important part. They had never done an orgy and never would. He also affirmed that Fred would never go after a girl that he had been with. Hermione smiled and asked him if he had ever chased a girl that Fred had been with. George blushed again and reminded her that he was still in love with Angelina.

« You, Harry and the git that I call little brother are named the Golden Trio well Fred, Angelina and I are named the twisted love triangle. »

Hermione did not make any comment, she did not want to know more about that. The look on Angelina's face pretty much said it all though Hermione still could not understand why Angelina was always glaring at her. As far as she knew she had never done anything to her.

...

On his side, George had been about to add that it had taken Fred a very long time to forget about her or to get off his head all those what if but he did not want to bring back the subject on the table and specially not in front of her, Fred's ex heart desire. Fred was over Hermione Granger and George certainly was not looking forward to go back to a place with a Fred in love with Hermione.

He did not even want to know if the young witch still had feelings for his twin or not, her odd attitude was already making him think too much.

He was not against the idea of his twin and Hermione together, not at all but it had taken Fred so long to forget about her. Fred had been heartbroken when Ginny had confirmed that Hermione was indeed returning Ron's feelings and even if George did not think like his mother, he did not think that Hermione was trustful when it came to feelings. Even if he dared to ask Hermione about her feelings, he wouldn't believe her because he thought that she was way too confused to think straight and has not she told Ron that she was lost and did not know what she wanted.

However, before to leave he asked her why it had been bothering her so much. He had not been able to stop thinking about it for the last hour.

« Well Fred and you don't keep secrets from each other, don't you. » she said blushing and George smirked.

« Nope, we don't. I know it was mutual Hermione, too bad he never got the guts to ask you to Hogsmeade. We had it planned but our lovely Umbridge ruined all our plans that year, we never had planned to leave school before the end of the year but we were running short on blood, we had to leave otherwise we would have ended up dead after another week of detention. Harry beat us that year in the amount of hours, he is really Wonder Boy. I still don't know how he had handled all this.»

« Neither do I. But you were on age, you could leave, he could not, he would have lost his wand, he knew that but I am pretty sure he would have followed you if he could have. »

And not just him she wanted to add but that would have been awkward.

...

They left the hospital at 8 o'clock sharp. They met Healer in Chief Thomas who informed them that they were almost done with the healing treatment but he added that there was not a single sign of awakening from Fred.

Hermione and George left the hospital in silence both lost in their inner worlds.


	11. Chapter 10 part I

I am really sorry but I have to cut this chapter in 2 parts. It would be too long in just one chapter, more than 5000 words...

But I won't let you wait for days, I will post it tomorrow or Thursday and as a bonus I will make part II a bit longer with the beg of the chapter 11.

and I am really happy that you are enjoying this story :)

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...

The next morning Molly and Arthur awoken all the inhabitants of the Burrow before 6:30am.

Kingsley had owled them during the night that he needed a place on the morning to have a meeting with all the members of the Order. He had written that it was an emergency and Arthur had owled him back a bit after 1am to inform the new Minister that he could have the meeting at the Burrow.

...

All the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione went downstairs wondering what could be so urgent. It could not be something good otherwise Kingsley would have not owled Arthur in the middle of the night.

Molly with the help of the girls was preparing breakfast even if they knew that none of them was hungry. The announcement of the meeting had made them lost their appetite. It was really weird to see all the Weasleys' men staring at the food on their plates, without touching anything.

Some of the worst memories were indelible and the war was going to be forever engraved into their memories. The pain was deeper than the hunger.

...

The meeting had been scheduled for 7:30am and a bit after 7am the members of the Order had started to arrive.

Neville, Luna and Andromeda, with baby Teddy, arrived first, followed by Katie, Oliver, Lee, Dean and Seamus.

Ginny, Harry, Hermione and Ron were really happy to see their friends and for a couple of minutes, they had been able to forget about the real reason of the presence of their friends at the Burrow. They were pleased to see their friends for something that was not a funeral. Even Hermione looked happy. Same for George who was chatting with Katie, Oliver, Lee and Angelina, who had arrived alone a bit before 7:15am.

Angelina had greeted everybody with a smile except Hermione but Hermione did not care. For some reason, unknown to her, the beautiful chaser was mad at her. Under other circumstances, Hermione would have asked Angelina what was her problem but in that moment, she did not care.

She had not done anything to Angelina, she had not even seen her since Angelina had left Hogwarts, two years ago, the battle excluded, so Angelina could not possibly have a real reason to be mad at her.

...

When Kingsley arrived at 7:29am, he was with Alicia Spinnet and a very cute and curvy but short blonde girl with deep blue eyes that none of them knew except Percy and Arthur who had greeted the witch with a smile. Hermione was pretty sure that she had never seen Percy's ears that red before and it had made her smiled. Love was very much needed after the war.

...

The kitchen was too small for all them so they moved outside, just in front of the house, and conjured everything they could find into benches.

Once they were all sat, Kingsley, who was standing in front of them with Alicia on his right and the other girl, which name was Audrey, on his left, cleared his throat before to speak. He started by thanking the Weasleys for offering their house one more time, then he thanked all the members for being present at the meeting. He also introduced Alicia and Audrey as the new Heads of the Auror's department.

They all knew Alicia so Kingsley focused on Audrey. Audrey Foreman was American, she was 23 years old, graduated from Ilvermony, promo of 1994.

She had been working for the Us Aurors' department. She had been promoted Head of the junior section in less than 6months before to ask, a year later, her transfer to Canada, where she had been the Head of the department for a year and a half before to finally be transferred to England only a couple of days ago.

Kingsley had been writing to the Ministers of several countries to ask for help. Many aurors had been killed over the last year and Kingsley needed hands to help the British aurors to catch all the Death Eaters on the run.

Obviously, when Audrey had sent her curriculum, he had automatically owled her back asking the young woman if she could come immediately to London to take the Head of the department with Alicia. Two hours later, Audrey was in London signing a three years contract.

Everybody was impressed but none of them really understood what the nomination of Alicia and Audrey had to do with the order of the day. Well some of them like Hermione, Molly or Charlie were having a pretty good idea of what Kingsley wanted and why he had called up this meeting...

Anxious, Hermione was biting her lips. When they had left Hogwarts after the battle, 10 days ago, she had the feeling that the war had not ended yet, not even the body of Voldemort on the floor had been able to modify that feeling and now the presence of Kingsley was just confirming the doubts that had been haunting her for the last 10 days.

And for the first time in her life, she did not want to fight. Perhaps she was asking for too much but she wanted a chance to live a normal life even though she had no idea where to start or what a normal life was but still she wanted to live as a regular 18 years old young woman, at least she wanted to try and joining the Ministry to help the aurors was not part of her plan.

...

Kingsley confirmed that he needed more hands to arrest and chase the death Eaters on the run all over the country.

People were whispering, not listening anymore so Kingsley jumped to the real purpose of this meeting.

« I am afraid that with only 35 aurors, we are never going to catch 58 Death Eaters. We've already caught 15 but the most dangerous are still running around the country. They cannot get out of the island but with 35 persons, it is going to take forever to catch people like Antonin Dolohov or Rodolphus Lestrange. »

The whispers had stopped, everybody's attention was back on Kingsley. Harry looked at his two best friends and with a nod Hermione and Ron confirmed that they had, too, understood what Kingsley wanted.

Molly had crossed her arms on her chest, she was waiting for Kingsley to disconfirm her doubts. Of course, the contrary happened, Kingsley confirmed the idea of Harry, Hermione, Ron, Molly and most of the members of the Order who had now got the message.

« I know that you are all trying to heal mentally and physically. I know that you are all still mourning and grieving and I know that people are still dying every day and that we are still waiting for friends and family members to wake up like Fred but I would not be here if it was not important, I would not ask if I did not need help. As long as Death Eaters are on the run, we aren't safe. We can't start to write a new chapter of our history if we don't catch them all. I am not here to force any of you to join us but please think about it. »

Harry automatically stood up and said that he was going to join the aurors. Ron, Dean, Seamus, Neville, Charlie, Bill, Fleur and Ginny followed with many more.

Molly said that none of her children was going to join the aurors. She added that they were grieving and in pain but her sons replied that they were going to help the aurors and the Order, no matter what she had to say.

Molly retorted that the war had already taken too much from them, turning Bill into a werewolf, George's ear and of course Fred who was still in coma but her sons did not listen. Defeated, she agreed to let only three of them joining the aurors for this last battle. Bill, Charlie and Ron had decided to go, George had to stay because of Fred and the shop and they were certainly not going to let their little sister go and Percy had his job at the Ministry already.

The three brothers added their names on the list and Kingsley thanked them all from the bottom of his heart.

However, someone had not signed the list yet and it had surprised everybody. None of them had dared to ask why except Kingsley, who before to put the parchment back into his pocket, asked Hermione if she wanted to join them or not. She, surprisingly, said that she had to think about it as she had other important things to deal with at the moment. Everybody stared at her and Ron, unable to hold back his spurt of jealousy, exploded.

« Do you have something better to do Hermione. »

« I said that I had to think about it, I haven't said no » replied Hermione calmly

« No but you will, for what spending your days at the hospital, that is ridiculous you and Fred weren't even that close, he doesn't even consider you as his friend so why don't you bother so much unless of course there is something that you had been hidding from us, both of you. » accused Ron, looking at Hermione with a despicable look.

« Eh Ron give her a rest and actually I think that Fred does consider Hermione his friend so stop barking and leave her alone » interrupted George angrily

George winked at Hermione which infuriated Ron even more.

« Of course they are friends, my arse and you George by defending them you are just making it worst. I don't even know why I find this surprising, I mean you and Fred are always covering each other's back but I have just one question since when. » barked Ron

« Ron, get lost. There is nothing going on between Hermione and Fred and be sure that if something was going between them, I would have been the first informed. » snapped George

« And Ron, just for the record Hermione had spent the last 10 months with me, and you, so leave her alone. I can understand her position. She has done so much already. I can't stop thinking about all the things that she hasn't done because of me and this bloody war but now the war is over and if Hermione doesn't want to come it is her decision and we should all respect that. We've been lucky enough to have us to save our arses since we are 11 years old. I think it is time for us, all of us, to learn how to think with our brains and not hers » said Harry who was glaring at his best friend and the rest of the audience to make them understand that there was nothing else to say.

Harry was getting tired of listening Ron barking about Fred and Hermione. He was tired to listen craps about a relationship that was only existing into Ron's head.

Hermione murmured a thank you to her best friend. She did not want people to think that she was a coward or a deserter or that she was not going to join the aurors because of Fred. Even if Fred was, obviously, one of the reasons why she could not join the aurors. She wanted and needed to be at the hospital, to be around when he was going to wake up, she needed him to wake up so she could move on with her life and stopped to think that she had failed. She could not explain what she was feeling. It was hard to describe, she had never felt something like that before. She had never needed something that much before and she could not stop thinking about him.

And at some point she could understand that it was confusing for the people around her and that it was kind of logical to think that she was spending her days at the hospital because she had feelings for Fred but she could not tell them what she had really done. If they knew, their reactions would be even worst.

She took a deep breathe and tried to forget about people's opinions. Ignoring was the best, Andromeda had told her that many times over the last few days.

...

After giving few instructions regarding the missions and the aurors' training, Kingsley said that he needed to have a word with the Golden Trio. Nervous Harry, Hermione and Ron followed him to the garden. They sat on a bench, next to the feet of tomatoes and green peppers. They were a bit scared, what could the Minister want from them now.

Kingsley, with a huge smile, announced them that the Ministry and the members of the Order had decided that each member of the Golden Trio deserved to have its own chocolate frog card. Harry and Hermione were very touched but Ron almost bursted into tears. Even in his wildest dream, he would have never dreamt of something like that, he had just got his own Graal. For a brief moment, he had stopped thinking about Fred and Hermione and had hugged tightly his two best friends.

Kingsley laughed and added that he needed the trio to stop by the Ministry to take the picture that was going to be printed.

« Oh I almost forgot, as you must know, there is a price that goes with the card, 1000 galleons, each of course. Now, if you excuse me I have to go to the office. I have a lot to do. Harry, Ron, I see you tomorrow morning to start your training. Hermione, I see you on Friday for the picture. And in case you want to join the aurors, you know where to find me. Have a nice day. » and with a smile he disapparated.

...

The trio could not believe it, their own chocolate frog cards and 1000 galleons, well only Ron and Hermione cared about the money but they were all very touched. They had never thought that they needed a thank-you gift. They had not done that to be famous, as if Harry needed to become even more famous...

They had fought for what was right and Harry and Hermione did not think that they deserved a price, at least not more than all the witches and wizards who had fought while they were looking for the horcruxes. Ron was thinking differently of course, he was finally getting something that none of his brothers had before him.

...

They ran back to the kitchen, where were the rest of the Weasleys and few members of the Order, who had not left yet, were eating some toasts. The Trio shared the news. Everybody knew already but they all congratulated the trio. Molly bursted into tears and hugged the members of the trio, all of them even Hermione. She told them how proud of them she was, Arthur and everybody else did the same. When George hugged Hermione, he whispered into her ear that Fred had another reason to awoken.

« He does have to congratulate you. He always knew that you were going to succeed. »

...

Once everybody was gone, Hermione left to the hospital. She had been worrying about her finances but with those 1000 galleons she knew that she would have enough money for a while. She even thought about looking for a place to leave. It was a bit ridiculous though since she was going to leave at the end of the holidays but on the other end she still had 3 months and a half to spend at the Burrow before to go back to Hogwarts and she did not know if she could handle it.

Once Fred would have awoken, she was going to think about it but for now her main preoccupation was still Fred. She did not know why she was incapable to think about the future, it was not that she needed Fred in her life or that her life was connected to his but still it felt like that.

Yet, she was convinced that she did not have feelings for him anymore and that what she was feeling was linked to the risk that she had taken to save his life, nothing else. She could not possibly have still have feelings for Fred, no, no she could not.

...

The rest of the week passed without any fight between Hermione and Ron. Ron was busy with the training anyway and he was slowly understanding what Hermione had tried to make him see. He was, of course, still quite sure that Hermione was lying and that she was still feeling something for Fred but he was trying to put it behind him, he did not want to loose her.

...

The Burrow was now empty most of the time, Ginny was training with the Harpies, the boys were at the Ministry, George at the shop or at the hospital which meant that often Hermione was left alone with Molly. Hermione was still spending as much time as possible away from the Burrow but Molly was trying to find all sorts of excuses to keep Hermione at home.

And this had made Hermione realized something, she had nothing to do until the 1st of September. Fred was not going to stay three months in coma. On Wednesday Healer in Chief Thomas had said that they were done with the healing treatment so Fred could not be in coma much longer and she was afraid of how she was going to spend her days until the 1st of September.

She wanted time to think but she would die of boredom if she did not find something to do. Moreover, she had already figured out a lot in two weeks.

She did not want to join the aurors, she was done fighting, running after the bad guys, at least for a while perhaps she could talk to Kingsley, tell him the truth about her parents. She could go to Australia to try to find her parents if it was safe. She had used a powerful charm but she had read once that it was not possible to totally erase a child from the memory of the parents, blood and love were stronger than magic so there was a chance for her to get her parents back.

She had to meet Kingsley on Friday anyway, she could mention it.

...

And she did.

On Friday she revealed to the Minister the truth about her parents but unfortunately Kingsley told her that it was still too dangerous.

However he promised to send a couple of aurors to look for her parents and to get in touch with the Australian Minister. He added that he was also going to check on her parents house, her house to see if it was safe enough for her to move back to her house as she had confided that she did not want to stay at the Burrow until the 1st of September.

...

After her chat with Kingsley, she had to run to the hospital. Arthur and Percy had informed her that Healer in Chief Thomas had owled them and that he wanted to see them all at 11am. Before she could ask, Percy had said that they did not know why Thomas wanted to them.

...

It was 10:55 when she arrived at St Mungo. Her hands were sweaty and she had dozens of knots in her stomach. She had a bad feeling. She could not even breathe properly.

When she opened the door of the room 502, all the Weasleys were already there, Harry was there too.

Grave Healer in Chief Thomas had been waiting for Hermione to arrive.

...

I swear last without Fred. Tomorrow or Thursday we will have him back


	12. Chapter 10 part II

Here is part II and Fred is back to life, I still think that this is a way too long chapter but I promised!

Welcome to many chapters of Fremione (from next chapter)

2 spoilers was next chapter won't be before Sunday. It is going to take times for Hermione and Fred to accept that they still have feelings for each other's. It is going to be messy and complicated.

Molly is going to be the number one enemy but she has good reasons that we will know much later.

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...

All the Weasleys were there, even Harry was there. Healer in Chief Thomas had been waiting for Hermione to arrive. He asked her to take a sit, she disliked his tone.

With an expressionless face, Thomas looked at all the redheads, Harry and Hermione.

« Well as I already said, we are done with the healing treatment, it's been two days already and there is not a single sign of awakening. Mr and Mrs Weasley, I am really sorry but you know the rules, if he had not awoken by Tuesday we would have to let him go. »

Hermione frowned and looked for Harry's eyes, they weren't understanding anything, rules? like what?!

The fact that almost all the redheads had started to cry was not comforting at all.

« We've done our best but we cannot make Fred coming back, he is the only one who can do that. There is nothing else to do on our side, I am sorry. »

He cleared his throat before to finish his speech. Hermione could not stop looking at him. She must had misunderstood.

« I am going to leave you alone. I will be in my office if you have any question. I haven't sent the papers to the Ministry yet, I wanted to let you know first. » he finished and he left.

...

« They can't do that, can they » asked Harry outraged

Arthur, that neither Harry or Hermione had ever seen cry before, raised his gaze and explained to Harry and Hermione that it was the legal procedure.

« I am afraid they can. Our laws are different, Muggles let people in coma for years, we don't. We have powerful healing treatment that can cure body and mind however, the mind is a complicated and complex world and in the wizarding' society when a wizard or a witch is totally healed but the mind refuses to reconnect with the heart, if your soul, body and your mind do not reconnect then it means that the mind is indeed dead. Your body works but your soul and mind are gone. »

« Why until Tuesday. » Asked Harry disconcerted

« It is the law, a week is given to the, mind, the soul and the body to reconnect. I can't believe that we have to deal with this now. From all people on this planet, if there was one person that I would have never imagined that his soul could die, it was Fred. Molly please come with me, I would like to have a word with Healer in Chief Thomas. Kids please go home, you too George, please and wait for us, please do as I said. »

Hermione frowned, her logical mind was disturbed. Her parents were cartesians, highly logical and since the apple never fell far from the tree, Mr Weasley's explanation was for Hermione inconsistent.

« Mr Weasley, I am sorry but I don't get it. Healer Thomas had said, when we arrived here two weeks ago that Fred was not dead because his mind and his heart were still connected. » commented Hermione

« I know what you are thinking Hermione and yes, indeed, he did say that but he had never said that it would be enough for Fred to live. It was enough to keep him alive, it is not the same as making him live. »

Hermione wanted to say that it did not make any sense but she knew that some of the wizarding laws were old and incomprehensible. She could not believe what she had just heard though. She had failed, she had not saved him, Dumbledore had warned Harry many times, it was not possible to resuscitate the dead, she should have known that it was not going to work.

A feeling of emptiness had overwhelmed her as if a part of her had just died. She followed the Weasleys out of the room and out of the hospital. They disapparated all together.

...

Nobody spoke during dinner, the house had not been that quiet since they had come back to the Burrow after the battle. The worst thing was to look at George, saying that he was destroyed was an understatement.

...

On the following day, they all went to Hogwarts, they did not want to but they had promised days ago to come to help to rebuild the castle. After two weeks of cleaning, the castle was ready to be rebuilt. It would not be finished in just one day but all the members of the Order, several students or ex students and all the teachers had agreed to meet every Saturday.

...

Before to head back to the Burrow, Hermione had managed to escape to McGonagall's office. She wanted to return the time turner. She had already opened the drawer where it usually was when Dumbledore awoken from his nap and told her that she should keep it. Hermione was very surprised to be greeted again by Dumbledore's presence.

The ex Headmaster asked her what had happened.

After summarizing the situation, Hermione let herself fall on McGonagall's chair. In tears she said that she had failed.

« I guess that you did not know about our rules regarding Wizards and Witches in coma. » commented Dumbledore oddly

She nodded

« I feel so stupid. I gave them hope for nothing, it is going to be worst if they have to let Fred go now, after his miraculous escape from Death's arms two weeks ago. This is all my fault. »

« Hermione don't blame yourself, Mr Weasley still has few days to wake up and in case he would not, you have to think that you've tried, you took the risk. If you have to let him go then you know that his time had arrived and that not even a time turner could change that. As I told you last time we met, I tried to save people, I tried to save Lily and James and no I did not fail and neither did you because no matter how powerful a wizard or witch can be, Fate always wins, there is nothing you can do to beat her. You can cheat Death, sometime, but not Fate. Hermione, you had given time to his family to say goodbye in case he would not wake up. » said Dumbledore who was trying to comfort the young witch

« Thanks Professor but I still feel awful. I wanted to save his life because I knew that I couldn't handle his death, my feelings are no different now than they were then. »

« Have you told him to wake up » asked the old man

« Of course, all of us. » she replied incredulous

« Then ask again, harder this time. »

Hermione was observing the portrait in the painting in a very odd way. Dumbledore noticed, he knew that Hermione still had to see to believe. She was no longer the fourteen years old teenager who had left divination in the middle of one lesson but he could feel that she was still reluctant when it came to believe in what could not be seen or magically/scientifcally/logically explained.

« I know what you are thinking but at that point what would it change. »

« I have to go. » said Hermione who did not want to have one of those conversations with Dumbledore.

She was still mad at him for dragging Harry into this twisted hunt without giving them any clue about anything. During the horcruxes' hunt she, often, had the feeling to be looking for the Holy Grail and she was not ready to forget that part of the story.

...

Before she could reach the door, Dumbledore begged her to keep the time turner. He told her that it was not safe to have it at Hogwarts. She did not say anything but she took back the pendant. Dumbledore smiled.

« Oh and Hermione, I am an old man, I had a long life and I did many mistakes so I am going to give you a piece of advice and no I am not asking you to give me an answer, just to think about my question deeply. Why does it matter so much, why does Frederik have to live, what is going to be the difference in your own life with him or without him. »

« Well. »

But he interrupted her before she could pronounce another word.

«Think about it before he wakes up because if he does, believe me he will ask you why you've used the time turner to save his life and not anyone's else. He is a very intelligent man and he is the one you usually fool people. I don't think that you are gonna be able to fool Frederik Weasley so be prepared for his questions. »

His eyes' met hers, she did not look down. She knew that he was right though.

« Don't worry Professor I will be. » she lied as she could not tell Fred that she had followed her heart, that would be disconcerting.

...

On Sunday 17th of May, after spending the day at Hogwarts, all the Weasleys with Harry and Hermione had decided to stop by St Mungo. They were anxiously waiting for a miracle. They did not want to believe that after two weeks of waiting, they would have to let Fred go...

...

As they were leaving St Mungo, in silence, walking towards the elevator, Hermione said that she had forgotten something in Fred's room. The Weasleys and Harry looked at her, some with a suspicious look on their faces like Ron and Percy.

She left them in front of the elevator and ran to Fred's room.

...

Hand on the handle, she took a deep breath. She was shivering but her instincts were telling her that she had to do it.

She opened the door and she did not even bother to close it behind her. The Weasleys were not there anymore, she was alone with Fred. And she had to try one last time.

She was observing the unconscious young man laying on the white bed. His lower body covered by the creamy white sheets. She headed to the bed. She felt the tears coming and for once, she did not even try to hold them back.

...

She was standing on his right side. She had taken his hand but she had instantly released it and instead of taking his hand again, she had put her hands on his shoulders and she was shaking them.

« Frederik Gideon Weasley, the prank has lasted long enough. Now, you have to wake up. You have to listen to me, you have to wake up. I am ordering you to wake up, is that clear. I did not take all those risks, I did not do all of this for nothing, are you listening. You aren't leaving me or your family. That's enough, we need you back, George needs you, your mother needs you, your father, your brothers and Ginny and Lee and Angelina and Harry and the shop and me. I need you back. I need you to wake up otherwise all my efforts would have been done in vain. I need you to wake up to move on. All I did was for you, do you understand. Fred, I lied to you last year, at the wedding. I did not have a crush on you, I was in love with you. I think you should know the truth.»

She made a small pause, she was crying so much that her entire body was shaking.

« Fred, you can't die, you can't. A beautiful life is waiting for you. I want you to live, to prank people, to joke, to invent products, to make us laugh, to live and to make your dreams come true. I want you to be happy Fred, please come back.»

She was now shivering even more than before. She was on the bed but she did not care. She could barely see Fred's face because of the rush of tears but she had managed to delicately replace his shoulders and head on the pillow. She had buried her face in his neck while she was punching his chest and shoulders. She had never felt so helpless.

...

She did not know for how long she had been crying, her face and upper body pressed again Fred, a minute, two, maybe ten. She had lost track of time until she felt strong arms around her waist and shoulders. She knew that it was George, she did not even have to turn.

She pulled apart from Fred and let George dragged her away.

As she regained a bit of composure she realized that Molly, Ron, Percy, Ginny and Harry were staring at her from the doorway.

She turned crimson and let her head rest on George's chest. Actually, she was trying to hide her face. She did not know for how long they had been in the room, what they had heard and what they had not. Nobody was supposed to be in the room, what she had just confessed to Fred was personal, it was between him and her.

She was feeling Ron's eyes dissecting her and then she knew that he had heard too much.

She was about to ask him if he had a problem but then she realized that she did not care. Ron could continue to imagine whatever he wanted. Molly, Percy and all the Weasleys could think whatever they wanted because it did not make any difference, Fred was still in coma and he had less than 48 hours to wake up.

...

Back at the Burrow.

A bit before dinner, Percy asked Hermione to help him to bring logs. She nodded and followed him outside. She had been waiting for that talk. She had caught Percy staring at her too many times over the last two weeks to think that he really needed help to bring logs.

As they were walking towards the garden, Percy told Hermione that he knew what she had done but affirmed that her secret was safe with him. He confirmed that he had, indeed, seen her before the wall exploded but pointed out that he had not been sure.

« Until today, until I heard what you had told Fred when you had ran back to his room. »

He could read fear in her eyes. It hurt as it meant that Hermione did not trust him yet.

« Don't worry, I won't tell anything, your secret is safe with me. But Hermione, there is a hunt. Kingsley had asked all the aurors and all the people who are working at the department of Mysteries to look for all the registered and unregistered time turners. I bet you used McGonagall's. » he said worried.

« How do. » she asked confused, only few persons knew about the time turner.

« Like you, I had too many classes at some point. McGonagall offered me the time turner but euh Dumbledore was using it that year, never mind. The point is that I know about it and I know that it is going to be the first time turner that they are going to check as it is one of the few registered and unfortunately it was at hogwarts and unlike you might think many, too many know about it. If Death Eaters find out about your little trip, you are gonna be in grave danger, we are gonna be in grave danger.» warned Percy

Perplexed, she asked what that meant. Percy told her that they were afraid of what Death Eaters could do if they could catch a time turner. He added that he believed that Rookwood might had seen her too.

Hermione had never seen Percy that worried before.

Percy was a smart and logical man and if he was scared it signified that he had looked for a way out and had not found any. But she was not scared, she could easily imagine what Death Eaters would do with a time tuner. As for her being in danger, well she had been marked as the undesirable number two, she had been tortured by Bellatrix, she had almost died while fighting with Dolohov so she could not care less about Rookwood.

« Hermione, Minerva is bringing the time turner next week even though we won't be able to verify it until we've got the special time turner of, a special time turner able to notify when was the last time that a time turner had been used. » explained Percy

Hermione gulped, she felt trapped and wondered how Pr McGonagall was going to be able to bring the time turner as she did not have it. She did not care about Death Eaters but the Ministry, she cared about it. She had violated the most important law of the wizarding world, she had changed time to save the life of the man that she had been in love with.

« Hermione, I swear that I will protect you and your secret either Fred lives or dies. You saved my brother and there is no way your wand should be taken for it. If Fred wakes up, I hope he will, you can be sure that he will always look after you and so will George. » said Percy who was trying to comfort Hermione

« They could take my wand. » asked Hermione who had stopped listening after that part of Percy' sentence.

She had not thought about the consequences or punishment... She did not know what they could be. She had only listened to her heart...

« Usually this is what we do, you could also be sent to Azkaban. But Hermione, it won't happen. I am not really good at breaking rules and I wish that Fred would be here because he would have thought about something to save both of you. » moaned Percy desperately

« Both of us, what do you mean. » she asked anxiously

She frowned, she was really scared now.

One thing was her own punishment which she could understand but Fred's, punishment for what being alive.

« Hermione, when a time turner had been used to modify the past, one of the part of the punishment is to go back on time to stop the wizard or the witch to succeed. » clarified Percy

« So I would be sent to Azkaban, or to the Muggles world, wandless and Fred would have to die. They would undo it, it is cruel and so unfair. Fred was one of us, on the good side, fighting with us, not against us » she said horrified

« It is the law Hermione either you like it or not. Time should not be changed, there are good reasons for it. I bet that Minerva and Dumbledore had warned you about it. I am glad that you have saved my brother but I am also worried because I know that unless his death was not written and Fred actually has a life to live something will happen. »

« You mean someone will have to die. » mumbled Hermione who could not breathe properly

Percy was shocking his head.

« I don't know. I am not an expert in time travel and I can't do any research because I don't want anybody to get suspicious but as far I know yes unless. »

« Unless. » interrupted Hermione breathless

« Nothing. Old wives' tales that I overheard at the Ministry a couple of times » he replied elusive

He did not believe those tales and he was sure that Hermione would not either.

...

He saw how worried she looked, he took her wrists and looked into her eyes before to hug her tightly. He sweared that they were going to find a solution. Hermione could not speak or think. Her hopes of winning had definitely collapsed. She had seen light during the week but it had not lasted and she was back into the darkness, the darkest room she had ever been in.

She wrapped her arms around Percy's neck and let the tears fell.

...

Ron caught Hermione and Percy right in that moment and his jealousy made him say horrible things.

He yelled that he believed that Hermione was after Fred but that apparently he was wrong and Hermione was after all the Weasleys male except him.

Percy rolled his eyes all the way back to the house. He was not even trying to stop Ron, neither was Hermione. It was better to let him yell alone than yelling back.

...

Of course, Molly and the rest of the Weasleys quickly understood that something had just happened.

Atmosphere was electrical and intense. They were all getting tired of this situation, even Harry wanted to shout at his best friend, Ron, not Hermione. They were about to loose Fred and Ron's jealousy was the last of their preoccupations. They even found his attitude disrespectful.

« Ron could you please give me the potatoes please. » asked Percy who could not reach the plate.

« Ask your girlfriend she is closer than I am. »

« She is not my girlfriend, come on Ron don't act as a five years old. »

« I've seen you. » barked Ron

« You have seen nothing. Mum please do not stick your nose into it. Ron, what you saw was absolutely not romantic. » snapped Percy who had seen his mother ready to attack

« You were hugging. » retorted Ron

« So, haven't you, haven't had everybody here. Ron, Fred might die and you are seriously telling me that what Hermions does and with whom is more important than our brother. I always knew that you were thick but I would have never imagined that you were that dim witted » argued Percy

Offended Ron focused on Hermione instead of his brother.

«I knew you were after one of my brothers, I did not know you were after all of them, I thought you were after Fred. George, Charlie look after yourselves, you are gonna be the next. »

« Cut it off Ron. You are a prat and seriously by acting in such a mature way no wonder why Hermione had rejected you. » snapped Percy

« Percy is right and you had forgotten to add me on the list of Hermione's conquest, we share the same room after all. » snapped Ginny

Bill, Charlie and even Percy supported their sister. Ron finally apologized for his lack of sensitivity and said that he was of course destroyed by the Thomas' news.

Molly however gave Hermione a despicable look. She had not like what she had heard at the hospital and she was very concerned about what could happen between her sons, Fred and Ron, and Hermione. She was not going to let the young witch sow discord.

...

In the meantime at the hospital, the mediwitches were doing their night round. They were now in the room 502 and when of the mediwitches sweared that Fred's fingers had moved.

They called Healer in Chief Thomas and they observed Fred for five long minutes, nothing happened. Healer in Chief Thomas rolled his eyes and asked the mediwitches to do not make him waste his time for nothing.

But the mediwitch had not hallucinated, Fred was slowly, very slowly awakening.

He was dreaming about the battle, like he had so many times but this time the wall was not falling on him and killing him, this time he had seen Hermione right before the explosion and for the first time he had managed to move and to breathe under the wall. Shocked by the vision of Hermione, he opened his eyes and sat up.

He looked around, his eyes slowly getting used to the darkness of the room.

_What the hell had happened to me, thought Fred. _

He did not make any noise or call anybody, he had chosen to try to go back to sleep and to wait until the morning to call a mediwitch. He was scared of what he could learn, was George ok, his family, Super Boy and of course Hermione. He did not know what had happened, how the battle had ended but he was sure that his dream was not just a dream. He had seen her, he was ready to bet his life that he had not hallucinated.


	13. Chapter 11

Here is chapter 11. Fred is back.

I will post next chapter on wednesday.

Maza25 welcome :)

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And finally sae264 welcome :)

Thanks a lot for supporting this story 3 3 3

...

18th of May 1998.

On Monday morning Hermione had decided to go to the hospital earlier than usual. She knew that she would probably cross George as she had heard him leaving before 7am but she did not mind. She needed to know if the healers were going to let Fred for dead or not. There was only 24 hours left.

...

In front of the door of the room 502 was George sat on the floor, his face hidden by his arms and hands. Hermione had stopped walking, she could not see his face but she could hear his sniffles.

Silently, she sat on the floor next to him.

« George don't give up. » she said in a quavering voice

Hermione opened her arms and George accepted her hug. He hugged her tightly, he was so devastated, broken. He was missing his twin so badly that he did not care to have been spotted in such moment of weakness, again, by Hermione.

Fred had only few hours to wake up or they would have to let him go and this idea was killing George. Dark ideas were on his mind in case Fred would not wake up. Nobody knew yet that Fred had awoken during the night.

...

Each sob of George was breaking Hermione's heart. She bursted into tears, it was so much more than what she could handle.

With their eyes full of tears, they looked at each other's.

« He is going to wake up, he has to. » she said looking into George's eyes. There was no hope left into his eyes and Hermione knew that there was probably not much hope left in her gaze either...

George's eyes were so different from Fred's. Their eyes had been the first difference that Hermione had found between them. She knew that for most people, they looked exactly the same but Hermione begged to differ, there were many differences between Fred and George. She had never been attracted to George, never, while a simple smile of Fred had the power to make her heart melted.

...

She sighed, she was probably never going to look into Fred's hazel eyes. His mischievous gaze, she was missing it, just like his smile and his laugh and his voice. During the hunt, listening to the radio, listening to his voice was comforting her. She was thinking about the last conversation that she had with him at the wedding, when he had forbidden her to think about any what if after they had both confessed that they used to like each other's during the twins' last year at Hogwarts.

She had listened to him and had not thought about any what if or if I had known but in that moment many what if came to her.

Despair invaded her as never before. If Fred did not wake up, everything would stay what if forever, Fred would become a what if and she could not accept it. He was too young to die.

...

She pulled apart from George and she closed her eyes as if George was gone.

George, who was observing her, did not want to be drowned in one of those awkward silence. Being surrounded by Hermione all the time was so odd. This morning he had come alone, he wanted to be alone with his twin. He had not been strong enough to enter into the room but still he needed time with Fred, just Fred without Hermione around. But there she was, hugging him and trying to comfort him when she was looking as broken as he was and that was driving him crazy.

Ron was openly in love with Hermione and as far as George and the Weasleys knew Hermione was supposed to love him back. Even if she had rejected him, they still believed that she would end up with Ron, so why was she acting as if she was Fred's girlfriend because no matter how hard she was trying to deny it, Ron and his mother were right, she was acting as if she really was Fred's girlfriend. Even Angelina Johnson had come to the shop a couple of days ago, blaming George for hidding that from her. She had come to confront him and she was really angry and hurt. He had managed to convince her that nothing had ever happened between Fred and Hermione and he knew that it was true but the attitude of the young witch was making him doubt. Fred would have never forgotten to mention something like that but George no longer knew what to believe.

Why had Hermione let the healers and mediwitches believe that she was Fred's girlfriend. He had agreed and had let her do it but maybe it had been a mistake. Her speech from Saturday night was not helping George to clear his mind either. He had been trying to ignore all those things but he could not anymore.

George knew that it was not the right moment to ask anything about Fred, instead he asked her if she wanted a tea. She replied without even looking at him.

« No, I am fine thanks George. »

He excused himself and left her alone in front of the room. He did not want a tea, he just had to get away for few minutes.

...

When George could no longer be seen, Hermione stood up and walked into Fred's room.

She sat on the chair next to Fred's bed, on the right side of his bed. Chair where she had been spending so many hours lately. She took Fred's hand in hers and stroked his palm and wrist with her thumbs.

She did not pay attention at first but suddenly she realized that Fred's fingers were moving. Her eyes widened, she squeezed his hand and he returned the small gesture. It was very weak but it was here.

Hermione bit her lips to hold back a scream of happiness. It could scare Fred and stop his awakening. She had read that in a book, a Muggle book, about the subject.

She stood up and sat on the bed right next to him.

With her free hand, she brushed his hair and stroked his cheeks. She was amazed by the fact that after 10 days his cheeks and chin were not covered yet by a huge beard. She suspected the mediwitches to shave him during their morning routine before the visiting hours.

...

She murmured his name a couple of times. She knew that she should have ran out of the room and looked for a healer and George but she did not want this to be a short lived happiness. She had to be sure first that she was not hallucinating, after all she had been dreaming about this moment for days...

« Fred, can you listen to me. Fred squeeze my hand if you can listen to me. » she whispered

As she felt the pressure on her hand, her tears had started to fall down on Fred's face. Fred had to open his eyes, he knew it. But he was scared. Why was Hermione in his room, where were the others.

« Fred, wake up please. » she begged in a whisper

He slowly opened his eyes. He was freaking out, why did she sound so devastated.

...

Hermione's heart missed few beats. Fred was awake, it had worked, Fred was alive. She had not used the time turner for nothing.

She was laughing and crying at the same time and Fred could not be more disconcerted.

Hermione felt happier than ever which was odd because yes Fred was alive because she had gone back on time and had managed to save him but Fred was only her friend so why did it feel like if she had got back the most important person of her life.

She shook her head, never mind, Fred was alive, she had succeeded that was all it counted.

...

Fred was staring at Hermione. He remembered everything so he had easily guessed last night that he was at St Mungo. However, he desperately wanted to know why Hermione was alone. He needed to know if George and his family were ok. He wanted to know which day it was, what had happened to him.

« Her mio. » speaking was harder than he had imagined. He had to make an effort to move his lips, his all body hurt so badly. The wall had really hit him hard, that was all he could think about when he was trying to move.

« Yes it's me. I am here. » she smiled stroking his cheeks

« George. » he murmured

She grinned, of course Fred's eyes had not been open for more than thirty seconds that he was already worrying about his twin.

« He is ok. » she reassured Fred

Fred smiled as much as he could, which was not much but Hermione felt her heart melted.

« Super Boy»

« He is ok too and so is Ginny, your mother, father and all your siblings and friends. We won Fred, Voldemort is gone, is dead. » she said as she was brushing his hair.

He smiled again, he was too weak to move but he was happy to know that his family was intact.

He had never seen her smiling like that before, except maybe during the Yule Ball and it was comforting. He liked her smile.

As she moved her face closer to his, he mentally panicked, did he have lost his memory and they were not in 1998 anymore. He hoped not.

For a brief moment, he thought that she was going to kiss him. She did but she only kissed his cheek which relieved him from serious doubts however not from all of them. He needed answers, he needed George. He was happy to see Hermione but after seeing her in his dreams, he needed to know what had happened, he was lost.

« I am gonna be back in a minute. » she said with a smile

« I think I will still be here, not feeling like running a marathon just yet. » he said weakly but with a smirk

She laughed, gave him another kiss on the cheek and told him that she had really missed him, he froze but since he was well kind of frozen, Hermione did not notice any difference.

And before he could realize it, she was gone.

...

He looked at the clock that was on the nightstand, 8:30, probably morning he thought as the sun was shining outside. He was nervous, he did not know where Hermione had gone.

He wanted to see his family, George, he wanted to see George. What if Hermione had lied to him and they were the only survivors. Ok that was an extreme and quite an improbable scenario but his brain had started to overthink until he, finally, heard a very familiar voice.

« Fred.» George expression was priceless. He had never looked happier.

Fred raised his gaze and his fears flew away. His twin, his other half was standing right in front of him with a huge smile on his face.

« Hey, how are you feeling Georgie, did you miss me » and with that Fred realized that he did not even know which day it was, he did not know for how long he had been gone.

George did not let him more time to think. He ran towards the bed and hugged his twin as never before.

« You are the best looking twin, you are the smartest, you are the whatever you want but if you ever scared me like that I swear that not even our mother will recognize you. » threatened George crying

« Georgie, I think I got it. I missed you too » chuckled Fred

« Yeah sure you missed me you prat, you took an extra nap of 15 days and that's all you have to tell me and by the way you are deathly white, can't tell the difference between the sheets and your body. Oh and I love you Freddie.»

« I love you too though we should be careful in our displays of affection, Hermione could get scared» mocked Fred

George had almost forgotten about her but there she was standing in the middle of the room. Fred did not look surprised to have her around, George really started to wonder if Fred could have been hidding something like that from him. He would have to figure out that later.

« Oh you're right, she could write to our mother. » George winked at her as he finished his sentence.

Hermione chuckled, she had missed them, the comic duo, so much, and finally they were reunited.

« I will leave you two alone so you can have a heart to heart talk. I am going to look for your healer and mediwitch and send a patronus to your family. Fred, I've missed you. I will be right back. » she promised grinning

...

Fred asked George if everybody was ok, how the battle had ended. George told him about the most important facts and promised to give him all the details tonight because he had to go to the shop and he did not want to get over the details in a hurry. Fred was proud of George for having reopened the shop, his grin grew wider when George said that the shop was crowded from 10am to 5pm every day.

« I have to go, I will be back at 5pm, Verity can close the shop. » said George

Fred nodded and told George to go and earn some galleons. He was about to ask why Hermione was here so early, he had to know, but he got interrupted by a healer in chief Thomas.

« Mr Weasley happy to have you back. I have to say that your timing could not have been better. Do you know which day it is. »

Fred raised an eyebrow, what did the Healer mean by timing.

« Well I had been in coma coma for 15 days so I guess 18 or 19 of May, 1998 of course. »

« So you remember how you have ended up here. » asked Thomas confused. He had not expected Fred to awoken as if nothing had happened.

« Unfortunately yes, I do remember Percy's joke. » he froze as the images flew back to his mind.

Hermione stepped back into the room in that moment. Fred looked at her. He was sure that he had seen her just before the curse had rebounded on the wall. He was a hundred percent sure that Hermione had casted a spell just before the wall had fallen on him. He had no idea what she had done but if he was alive, it was probably thanked to her.

How did he survive though, he had no idea.

« And the wall, I remember it, falling on me. After that nothing » he said still staring at the young witch who's cheeks had turned red.

George did not miss any detail of the scene. Pensive, he was rubbing his chin.

...

Thomas interrupted everybody's thoughts.

« Good, now Miss Granger and Mister Weasley, I need you to please leave the room for few minutes. Do not worry, we just need to do a quick check up. Why don't you use this time to send a patronus to your family. I am sure that your mother would love to see Frederik. »

Hermione and George obeyed and left the room.

...

The mediwitches examined Fred while the healer was still asking questions.

« Well it seems that you had been very lucky Mr Weasley. » finally said Thomas after writing comments a parchment

Fred asked how he had survived.

«I would say that someone had casted an old shield spell on you before the wall hit your otherwise I don't know how you could possibly be alive. You were very weak when they brought you here, almost all your bones were broken, you were, let's say, physically dead but you are gonna be ok. We are going to keep you at St Mungo for at least a week. If we do not face any complication, you will be free to leave next Monday. »

Fred felt like he had resuscitated and felt extremely lucky to be alive.

« I have no idea how I made it Sir but I will be eternally grateful for all the work that you've done and I will definitely see life from another angle from now on. So next Monday right. » asked Fred who did not want to stay at the hospital

« Correct but you will have to rest for at least a full month, at your parents' house of course not your apartment in Diagon Alley» before to think about going back to work. You will have to get back to live your normal life step by step. »

« I will. » smiled Fred even if the perspective of spending a full month at the Burrow was not overwhelming. But the Burrow was still better than the hospital and Ginny should be there and maybe Ron. It did not cross his mind that Harry and Hermione would be there too though.

« Oh no doubt about it, you have a very loving family and a very lovely girlfriend to take care of you and help you in that journey.» affirmed Thomas with a grin

Fred raised his eyebrows, a girlfriend, he did not remember having one that but he was not going to complain. He had been single for a while, he was opened to meet the girl who was pretending to be his girlfriend and why not ask her out. Who knew, she could be the love of his life.

He wondered why George had not mention that, it was as important than Voldy and his morons thought Fred. He could not wait to meet this mysterious girl.

...


	14. Chapter 12

New chapter. It is the first real chapter between Fred and Hermione. I hope you will like it, let me know :)

I said wednesday but today works better for me.

next chapter on thursday or friday.

We are almost 50, I am so so happy. I was initially thinking about sending the M chapters by DM but that won't be possible so I will have to find another way, like really upgrading the story in few chapters.

Chinatea1999 welcome :)

God rest ye merry hippogriff welcome :)

and finally for today flyingfishesbb welcome :)

Fantasygirl20 thanks for your words :)

Xx

...

« Yes, I think I am lucky. » grinned Fred who could not wait to meet the girl though he hoped that the girl was not one of those crazy ladies that were stalking him and George.

...

Few months before to go hidding with the rest of their family, they had been, illegally, working on a new love potion, of course a pot had exploded and all the people who were in the shop in that moment had been contaminated. Unfortunately, Fred and George had not been able to get in touch with all the people who were at the shop in that moment to give them the antidote which meant that some crazy ladies, and men, were still running around thinking that they were crazy in love with Fred, George, Lee or Verity.

Truth be told the twins did not need any help to get women and this explosion had had some serious undesirable consequences so Fred really hoped that it was not one of those women.

...

Healer in Chief Thomas left the room with a smile on his face. He was happy for the Weasleys.

He had left Fred alone with the two mediwitches who were babbling and asking Fred random questions.

Well they were answering the questions before he could do it himself but he did not mind, he was enjoying the show.

Beside the pain that he was feeling whenever he was trying to move, he was feeling incredibly well and he had to admit that the mediwitches' show was really entertaining and useful as they were mentioning the persons who had come to visit him, the time that they had been spending at his bedside...

Fred was getting suspicious about that mysterious girlfriend as there was only one person that he knew who had not been named by the mediwitches and he was sure that this person must had come often as she was there when he had opened his eyes not even an hour ago. And no, he did not believe that he had miraculously awoken the first day that she had decided to come, that was too melodramatic for Fed to believe in this theory.

He was waiting for the mediwitches to spit her name out but it did not come. They were still babbling about his girlfriend and of course Fred could not ask who she was.

« You have no idea how happy we are that you have awoken. We know that many won't and soon we will have to let them go. Your family and your girlfriend would have been heartbroken if we had to let you go. » said the shorter of the two mediwitches while she was helping Fred to put on a shirt.

« Oh yes, Melissa is right. Your poor twin, your mother and your poor girlfriend. I swear that I've never seen someone spending so much time here. The first one arriving on the morning and the last one leaving, after the visiting hours, always. This morning George arrived before her which is extremely rare, they usually come together. She was leaving for lunch or when your mother or your younger brother, Donald, Ronuald, sorry I have forgotten his name, anyway she was only leaving when they were about to arrive but pretty much that was all. »

Natasha, the tallest of the two confirmed that apart from those moments and lunchtime, often, Fred's girlfriend had not left his bedside.

This morning thought Fred who was there gawping and staring at the mediwitches. Who on earth was this mysterious young woman.

He was thinking about someone. This someone was the same girl that had first come to his mind when he had heard the word girlfriend but it was crazy. It could not be possible. And yet his instinct, and instinct only not something like old feelings or an old desire, was telling him that she was the girl.

...

He raised his gaze and looked at the interior window. Behind the curtains he could distinguish the figures of Hermione and George chatting actively in the corridor.

Melissa, and her crazy pink haircut, had followed his gaze. She smiled.

« You are very lucky to have her. She had been talking to you, reading you some Muggles stories. I've never seen her smiling before this morning. »

Muggle, this word turned the last alarms in Fred's head. There was only one person who could have read him Muggle' stories. His eyes laid on the nightstand, he saw few books, one of them that could not mislead regarding who was its owner. He had seen that copy of Hogwarts a history so many times that he could not be mistaken.

His gaze moved to the empty chair next to his bed, on his right side where was Hermione's blue denim jacket and of course another book. His doubts were no longer doubts, Hermione Granger was the girl.

What the hell, thought Fred

There was no other possibility, the girl that they were talking about was Hermione Granger.

And he got a proper confirmation from Melissa, not that he needed one at that point though, proofs were all around. Even the empty bottles of diet coke in the bin were a proof. Fred knew that Hermione was very fond of this Muggle beverage.

« Don't worry, we are done. We are going to let your brother and your girlfriend come back inside in a minute. » giggled Melissa

He had been about to say that there was a mistake and that Hermione was not his girlfriend.

...

About a year ago, a bit more than that, Fred would have enjoyed this masquerade but it had taken him a long time to forget about Hermione Granger and he did not want to be involved into a weird plan. He knew that he was not strong enough to pretend anything and even less to be Hermione's boyfriend. His heart would get confused in less than a week besides he had made a promise to George and he must stuck to it.

...

However, he had decided to do not say a word to the mediwitches. Maybe for some strange reasons Hermione and his family had lied and Hermione was really pretending to be his girlfriend.

And he knew how he was going to find out.

...

When Hermione and George stepped into the room, Fred smirked.

« Fred, you are dressed up. » noticed George

« Yeah, apparently the asleep me can be naked and vulnerable to everyone' sight but the awoken me can't. I don't really fancy this color though, something more colorful would have been better, like orange or yellow or purple. » said Fred who was pulling on the grey sleeves of the hospital pajama with a face of disgust.

George and Hermione laughed but Fred was not done yet.

« Keeping me naked, I could have caught a cold. I hope the mediwitches had not tried to take advantage of the situation to have more than just one good look. » exclaimed Fred falsely offended

« Since when are you prudish. » teased George

« Since I have been brought here and undressed against my will. Bloody hell I don't even know who had undressed me. » said Fred worriedly

Hermione, who had first thought that it was one of Fred's overzealousness, was wondering why Fred seemed so concerned about who had undressed him. Of course, there were really strict rules regarding nudity at the Burrow and Hermione had only seen Fred shirtless once, the last two weeks excluded, but still she was surprised to see him that worried.

« A mediwitch, do not worry it was not Mum » reassured George

Fred had let escape a sigh of relieve which had made Hermione frowned. She was ready to bet that Fred had done something on his body that would infuriate Mrs Weasley and she would love to know what it was. She could not picture Fred with a tatoo but who knew, the twins were known to have crazy ideas.

She shocked her head, she had to forget about it, she would never find out what it was anyway. The possibilities of Fred telling her what he had done were pretty low as for seeing what he had done, probabilities were lower than the level of the sea.

...

« Fred, I am sorry but I have to go to the shop. I will be back in few hours, Mum, Dad, Gin, Ron and Harry should be here in less than an hour. Meanwhile I let you in the hands of Hermione. » grinned George

« Great. I think that an hour should give us enough time to pick a day for the wedding, don't you think Hermione. » asked Fred innocently

Hermione turned crimson while George had bursted into laughter.

« Hermione, my love, I think we need to talk. » insisted Fred which had forced Hermione to look at her feet.

...

The mediwitches had probably shoot out the big news and Hermione had not anticipated anything. She had been caught off guard which, she knew, was something extremely dangerous when your interlocutor was Fred Weasley.

George was finding the current situation really interesting. He wished that he could stay to listen Hermione justify herself, it would be fun but he had to go to work.

He closed the door behind him but he clearly heard Hermione cleared her throat and told Fred that this was not what he was thinking.

...

« Look Fred this is not what you think. » she started but she did not what else to say.

Being alone with Fred was suddenly intimidating her. She had been through a lot of emotions lately but she had not felt that vulnerable before.

In front of Fred, she was defenseless, at least she was feeling like that and Fred and his flirty, mischevious mood were not helping.

« Oh no, but then why does everybody think that you are my girlfriend. »

He, theatrically, placed his hands on his heart

« Hermione, are you telling me that everything I've heard since I've awoken is nothing more than a bunch of craps. And I thought that I had finally managed to find the key of your heart. You do know how to break a man's hope Hermione. » he said falsely offended and with a devilish smirk on his face.

But the smirk faded when he realized that Hermione was still redder than a tomato. He loved to fool around but with Hermione it had always been different and the last thing that he wanted was to embarrass her.

« Hermione, I just don't want to mess up that's why I am asking you why everybody does think that I wooed you enough to call you my girlfriend. » he said gently

Hermione had noticed the change of tone but she was still fearing to speak. She bit her lips and put her sweaty hands into her jeans' pockets.

Fred was waiting for Hermione to answer him. She looked scared and it was troubling him.

« Hermione why. » he asked flustered

« Because I kind of never denied it. But Fred, only the staff believes it. Except George, nobody else knows that I lied to the medical staff. As I was not a Weasley, visiting hours were restricted for me so well. »

Fred, who's mind was as sharp as usual, understood and finished her sentence

« You lied and said that you were my girlfriend so you could get more than the regular visiting hours. »

She nodded and added

« Yeah like kind of unrestricted visiting hours. » she mumbled

« Good job Granger. I am proud of you, you do are so good at breaking the rules without breaking them. But I guess that nothing will ever win over your show at Gringotts. » smiled Fred who was relieved to know that there was a logical, and worthless, explanation of Hermione's behavior. Any other explanation would have been a danger for Fred.

« Actually, I am proud of that one. » she said finally laughing

...

It was easy for people to relax in Fred's company but for Hermione it was different, she had never known if she should be on her guard or drop her guard.

To protect herself, and her feelings from being brought to light, she had often, wrongly, snapped at the young man but she could not do that anymore. She did not want to keep acting in such an immature way at any rate but she did not know how to relax in his company.

She had always been so scared of being one of the twins' next victim, scared to be Fred's next victim. She had been keeping her feelings and fatasies about Fred to herself because she had always been afraid of making a fool of herself in front if him and apparently the fact that he had confessed to her that he also did have a crush on her was not helping her to make any improvement.

She did not want Fred to see her as an annoying fangirl. She did not know how to act normal and being alone with him was making her heart beat incredibly fast. Also she was wondering what he really remembered about the explosion...

...

His sexy voice brought her back to earth

« You have to be proud of that one. Would pay Galleons to see you as Bellatrix. »

She chuckled and told him that actually her interpretation of Bellatrix had been really bad. Fred shrugged and said that maybe it was better since Bellatrix was certainly the devil's daughter.

« Anyway, Hermione I still want to know why you had to pretend to be my girlfriend. I mean, I know that I am the best looking twin and everything but I don't think that this is the reason why you have been coming here every day. » he insisted

« I needed silence, time to think, I did not want to be at the Burrow all day. I know that I should not have lied but I needed a place to go where I knew that nobody would come to bother me with stupid comments» explained Hermione who could not mention her trip to the past. She was not lying anyway and Fred had no valid reason to do not believe her.

Fred mentally noted that she was staying at the Burrow and with that in mind the idea of spending a month there was not that horrible, morever Super Boy was probably there too. He smiled at Hermione and jumped back into their conversation.

« Well indeed I think that since I was in coma my answers must had been really pertinent. » joked Fred

« Indeed. They were. You had been a very good company, very pleasant, very quiet, everything I needed» replied Hermione with a wide grin on her face

« Am I not always a very pleasant company. Be careful Hermione, you don't want to offend a poor young wizard who had been in coma for two weeks, do you. » asked Fred impishly

Hermione laughed and shocked her head. She finally looked into his hazel eyes and her heart missed few beats. He was really alive, she had really succeeded.

...

She looked at her watch, she did not want to be in the room when the Weasleys would be arriving. She bit her lips again, she had to go, she really did not want to but Ron would make comments that Fred would not understand and they would end up fighting and then Mrs Weasley would murder her.

« Fred please do not mention it to your family, specially to your mother or to Ron, the girlfriend part. »

Fred who was adjusting his pillows, accidentally dropped one of them on the floor and very concerned by Hermione's voice he asked her if she was alright

« Yes, I am. » she lied

She took the pillow and gave it to Fred, she was still smiling but Fred had been looking at her way too often to be mistaken

« You don't look like someone who is happy or even just fine to me but if you say that you are fine, I should believe you, shouldn't I. You know, I cannot really move from that bed yet so if you need someone to talk to, I still have two ears.» he said gently

She could feel the tears coming, she really had to go even though she wanted to get everything off her chest. She trusted Fred, and despite her old fears, she knew that he would listen to her.

« I just don't know where to start. I am not sure to know when I've lost track of my own life. » she admitted

« I think that we are all a bit lost. Hermione, you can trust me, I won't judge you» he affirmed seriously

« I know. I am sorry, I have to go, I really can't stay Fred. » she said elusively

« Hermione, you've been coming here every day, don't tell me that now that I am awake you are not going to come anymore. I know that I can be an annoying blabbermouth sometimes but I would love you to come back. » he said sincerely

She raised her gaze to meet his and she promised to come back soon.

As he was looking into her eyes, he remembered why he did have a crush on her during his 6th year and more than that during his 7th year at Hogwarts. She was bloody brilliant, intelligent and she was so brave and defining her by the bushy egghead or the buck teeth was no longer possible. She did have turned into a very attractive young witch with nice curls and a perfect smile.

She was also spontaneous and funny in her own way and even if she had never admitted it, she was sassy and Fred loved it.

And she was always smelling so good, this mix of bergamot, rose damascena and musc, he had always loved it.

Warning alert thought Fred.

He could not fall again for Hermione Granger. His stupid crush, George would use another word, on her had destroyed his relationship with Angelina and had ruined many more dates which could have potentially turned into a relationship. It had been hard for him to forget about her but he was over her and it had to stay like that.

He was probably just confused to have her so close, he had not seen her for months, yes confused that was what he was, nothing else.

...

and as usual 2 spoilers

next chapter is going to be Fred/George and Fred/Hermione. The rest of the characters won't be back until chapter 13. There are some basis to install


	15. Chapter 13

Here is a new chapter

next one will be on saturday

welcome :)

alessia904 welcome :)

MayaBe welcome :)

and Hufflehuggs welcome :)

xx

...

His family had arrived not long after Hermione's departure which had made him forgotten about her, well that was true until they were gone only because after that, he had spent all day waiting for Hermione to come back which had highly annoyed George who had noticed of course.

Unfortunately for Fred, Hermione had not come back. He was happy to have George and his family but he never really had Hermione just for himself until their morning talk earlier that day and he was looking forward to spend more time with her, just the two of them. He knew that he should not spend too much time with her but he wanted to become her friend, a good friend.

...

George had come back around 3pm and he had spent the afternoon explaining to his beloved twin everything that had happened during his coma. He had been careful to not mention certain details like some part of the conversation that their mother had with Hermione or some of Ron's absurdities as he knew that Fred would overreact.

He had glared at his twin when Fred had asked if Ron and Hermione were together. However, he had not hide the fact that Ron was thinking that Hermione had rejected him because she was still in love Fred.

George was observing his brother, he asked him why did he care so much, why did he want to know if Hermione and Ron were together.

Fred shrugged

« I just want to know what Ickle Ronnikie had done to her this time. You haven't seen her face this morning, she looked, I don't know, I had never seen her like that before. She looked scared. »

« Fred. » sighed George

« Don't Fred me George. Is she alright. » asked Fred concerned

The last thing that George wanted was to talk about Hermione Granger but Fred could be very stubborn when he wanted.

« Hard to say. She has changed. I think that something is wrong with her, it looks like she is keeping heavy secrets but she is not speaking with anybody not even Ginny, not even Super Boy. Your room had been her sanctuary but she can't hide herself in here anymore. Maybe she just doesn't want to be near Ron, he is being asshole. »

« And nobody is defending her, you are just letting her enduring all this, seriously. You should have done something» blamed Fred

Upset George snapped at his brother.

...

This was the reason why George did not want Fred to spend too much time with Hermione because the young witch was their only disagreement. Fred was always defending her even when Hermione was wrong. George and Fred had fought twice in twenty years, in both, Hermione was involved even if she had no idea.

Of course, George was not a Romione fan and as everybody else he had always admired her intelligence, bravery and determination, after all the young witch had given up on everything she had just to go treasure hunt with Harry and Ron, but that did not mean that he wanted to see his twin with her. If he was honest with himself he could easily understand what had seduced Fred and frankly speaking Hermione and Fred could be a very good match and this was George's problem. It had always been Fred and George and with someone like Hermione in the pot he was afraid to be removed from the pot.

He had shared his insecurities with Fred when Fred was seriously thinking about confessing his love to Hermione. Fred had laughed and had told George that no witch would ever come between them and even after all this time George remained unsure.

...

« Fred, I think that she is old enough to defend herself besides we all know that it is better to do not take side when they are fighting. Hermione is a big girl, she can take care of herself. » affirmed George calmly

« I beg to differ and if I hear Ron or anyone else putting her down, they are going to wish that Voldy had killed them. » said Fred angrily

« You are overreacting Fred. »

Fred shocked his head

« No, I am not. There is something wrong with her and I am amazed because nobody gives a shit. Why is she staying at the Burrow if she has to run away from there each day before breakfast, where are her parents, does she need anything. Those are basic questions George. Someone could have asked, I would have. » retorted Fred

« You were in coma Fred but you are right, I am sorry nobody had given a shit, we were just too busy thinking what our lives would be without you. »

« I guess that's why Ron, Harry, Charlie and Bill had joined the Aurors or the reason why Ginny is training with the Harpies because they were too busy thinking about what life would be without me. I am not blaming anyone for moving on with their lives, if I had died, I would not have wanted people to cry days after day. Life must goes on but for Merlin' sake George do not serve me such a pathetic excuse. » Scolded Fred

« Fred for your own good please stay away from her. » Begged George

« Certainly not. I am over her but I still care about her and I am going to do my best to help her to feel better. You could at least had brought her Crockshands, I am sure that she is dying to see her cat. She loves the fury little beast. »

« Don't say that I haven't warned you Freddie. I will stop by the farm to pick up her cat so she can have him back tonight but as far as I am concerned that's all I am going to do. » said George coldly

Fred rolled his eyes. He put his hands on his brother' shoulders and looked into George's eyes.

« You are unfair George, nothing is her fault. You are blaming the wrong person. » He wanted to add that without Hermione he would have died but George had enough already and Fred knew that it was better to let that chat for another day.

...

On the following day Hermione left home as early as usual except that she first stopped by Grimmauld Place, she did not want to see George at the hospital. He had brought a surprise with him, her fury cat, when he had come home the day before and Hermione was convinced that George had known all along where her cat had been and that he had not bothered to bring him back to her until Fred had told him to.

George had been stupid enough to mention that Fred had told him that she was probably missing Crookshanks. She had not been surprised by Fred's thoughtfulness but she had been really disappointed by George's lack of sensitivity until she remembered that George was waiting for Fred to awoken and that Crookshanks was probably his last preoccupation.

I am a bloody idiot, she thought as she was on her way to Andromeda's.

...

Andromeda was happy as always to have Hermione around and the young witch had found a sort of mother's figure that she desperately needed. Andromeda was her mother's age, she had been living with a Muggle Born so she was aware of all Muggle's stuff and technology which was making everything easier to talk about, easier than with Mrs Weasley...

Curiously Hermione was not feeling that guilty around Andromeda which was strange as Hermione still had around her neck the time turner that had saved Fred, a time turner that she could have used to save Remus and Tonks.

Perhaps the fact that Andromeda had affirmed several times that she knew that Tonks was going to die when she had left the house to go to Hogwarts for the last battle was helping Hermione to act normal around Andromeda. As if Tonks' death was really written.

Hermione was amazed by Andromeda. She had lost her daughter, son in law, husband, her house and so much more but there she was taking care of her grandson, renovating the old Blacks' house, working with Kreacher and listening to Harry and Hermione whenever they needed it.

She was such a strong woman who had fought her all life against the principles that had been instilled to all the Blacks descendants since their birth. She had been rejected by her family and she had been forced to live in a world that she did not know.

Ted's parents had been against the marriage of their son as much as the Black had been against the marriage of their daughter. After graduating, they had moved into the Muggle's world for a couple of years as Andromeda feared for her daughter's life. She had been mocked and judged as she did not even know how to make tea properly without magic but she had learnt.

She had told Hermione and Harry that love had been her reason for living. No matter how hard it was, she knew that she would always have Ted.

All those things that Andromeda had told them about her life were giving to Hermione a lot to think about. She wished to experience a love as strong as Andromeda and Ted, or James and Lily, a love that would never end, not even after death.

French people said: _One person is missing and the whole place is empty_, this was exactly what Hermione wanted to feel.

...

They happily chatted for a bit more than an hour and a bit before 9am Hermione said that she had to go to the hospital. She wanted to see George and apologize. She had not been impolite or mean when he had come back with Crookshanks in his arms but she had not properly thanked him either. She had asked where Crookshanks was, George had eluded the question which had annoyed her and she had left the room upset with her fury cat in her arms.

Andromeda, to whom Hermione had told everything, approved the initiative.

« Please say hi to Fred for me. I have to bring Teddy for his check up on Thursday, tell Fred I will pay him a visit if he wants us to of course »

« I am sure he will be happy to see you and Teddy. Now that he is awake he will need company. » smiled Hermione

« Won't he be busy enough with your company. » asked Andromeda jokingly

The comment made Hermione blushed

« Look Hermione, you are a big girl but are you sure that you really don't have feelings for him anymore. I personally don't care about it but others do. Honey from the outside it does not look good and what is he going to think. I mean imagine for a moment that seeing you there makes him believe that he can have a shoot with you. »

Hermione sighed. Nobody had brought up her feelings on the table for a couple of days and she was enjoying this truce. She looked into Andromeda's blue eyes and instead of repeating for the thousandth time that she did not have feelings for him anymore, she said that Fred did not have feeling for her anymore.

She had to insist to make people understand that it was over, worst it had never existed. Nothing had ever happened between them.

...

Andromeda stood up to prepare Teddy's bottle. She shocked her head and refuted Hermione's argument.

« That's what he had told you but things change. A lot had happened, he could have lied to you. You were about to live on a suicide mission and all the Weasleys thought that you were in love with Ron, he believed that too. I saw his face last year at Christmas when Ginny said that you were in love with Ron. Believe me Fred's face was not the face of someone who was thinking of you as any girl next door, a face pretty much like yours when you are talking about him.» explained Andromeda

« As you said a lot had happened. I don't have feelings for him anymore and believe me he doesn't have feelings for me either. It was two years ago, water had passed under the bridge, lot of water. » insisted Hermione who did not need to know that.

Fred and her together that was an old fantasy and thinking about was not going to help to move on with her life.

...

Andromeda was not looking for a fight but she had the feeling that Hermione was refusing to accept the fact that she still had feelings for Fred. Andromeda was older, she did not have an easy life and she knew that being in denial was never a good thing. Consequences could be dramatic besides Andromeda did not share people's opinions about Hermione and Ron. She could not picture them together but she could picture Fred and Hermione.

« Exactly then why are you going to the hospital. Don't tell me that you are looking for a quiet place to think. Honey, I don't know Fred that much but quiet doesn't sound like him»

« I don't have this answer. » mumbled Hermione

« Let's hope that he won't ask you the same question then. » pointed out Andromeda

Hermione stood up

« I just can't be at the Burrow all day and I don't want to join the aurors, I cannot go looking for my parents and Fred is good company. He is going to make me laugh and I think that I need a good laugh. I am lost and I need someone who is going to treat me for what I am, an eighteen years old girl. I am not the undesirable number two with him, I am not just the girl of the golden trio, I am not Hogwarts' bookworm, I am Hermione Granger and I feel like Hermione Granger when he is around and believe me Andromeda, I haven't felt like Hermione Granger for edges.»

It had come from the bottom of her heart.

Andromeda giggled. She was pleased to finally get a reaction from the young witch. Hermione's speech had reminded her of own daughter. With a bit of time Hermione would open her eyes.

« What you've just said is very deep. I got you, now go or you are going to miss George. Please come for lunch tomorrow. Kitchen is almost finished and Kreacher and I have found a way to make the fridge works. I am really excited. » she said with a smile as she was looking around the new kitchen.

The old kitchen had been painted in a very light shade of blue, they had tiled the floor with light grey tiles. White tiles had been put around the kitchen sink, all the furnitures had been sanded with aromatic plants on the different shelves and a big jar of lavender had been placed on the table. It really looked better and luminous.

...

When Hermione arrived at the hospital, Fred was staring at his breakfast. She smirked and asked Fred if there was something wrong with his toasts.

« They don't know what a Weasley eats for breakfast or any other meal. Yesterday they had given to me a rather small bowl of mashed potatoes for dinner and a compote and they want me to get better. With food for kids, yeah that is going to work» replied Fred sarcastically

« You had been in coma for more than two weeks. Your stomach needs time even if you are starving, if you eat too much, you might get sick. I am sure that soon they are going to give you a full roasted chicken » reassured Hermione rolling her eyes and laughing

« Maybe. Anyway what's bringing you here. After you had ran away yesterday, I thought that I would not see you here any time soon. I even have started to think about an excuse for the mediwitches to explain your absence or worst our break up. »

« I told you that I was going to come back. I would not have lied to you but I did not want to see Ron or your mother. » she said looking into his hazel eyes.

« Yeah George told me about some lovely chats that you had with both. Ron will come around eventually even if he is thicker than a troll. As for my mother, she is not really mad at you, you had destroyed her plans, she is gonna be hurt for a while but she still loves you.» reassured Fred

Hermione shrugged and sat in her chair. She did not know what George had told Fred. She should have asked but she did not want Fred to ask her questions

On Fred' side it was pretty much the same thing. Fred was smart enough to do not ask too much though. He knew that the young witch was having a hard time but he believed that she would talk about it when she would be ready.

However he did ask why she had rejected his little brother. This question had been driving him mad all night.

She explained him how she was feeling towards Ron and Fred got her point. She basically repeated to him what she had told Ron.

« Well my brother is a git if he can't understand that you need a fresh start. But he is hurt, I think he really has feelings for you and I don't think that those feelings are a novelty. »

Hermione shocked her head

« I don't think so. You see Fred, I think that Ron, as I used to think, wants to think that he loves me, so many persons think that we should be together and that's why it is so confusing but as soon as he will behave as an adult, he will realize that he is not in love with me. »

« Hermione, please tell me that this is not the reason why you had turned him down. Tell me that you have not done it because you think that he is not in love with you. I can tell you that Ron has been in love with you for years even if he was to thick to understand his own feelings.»

Fred was the last person on earth who wanted to see his baby brother and the only girl that he had ever loved together but he really cared about the young witch happiness and if she needed Ron to be happy then he would do his best to help her to get him. Hermione put a finger on his lips to silence him.

« I turned him down because I am not in love with him and believe me, I feel really bad about this because Ron is right, it is all my fault. I misunderstood my own feelings and mixed up everything. » confessed Hermione

A huge weight left Fred's heart when he heard those words. He should not be happy about it, Ron was probably heartbroken and Ron was his baby brother but it would have broken his heart to see Ron with Hermione. She was way too good for Ron.

« Hermione, we don't choose who we fall for. If you are honest then you had taken the best decision. »

« I am. I don't love him, I never had, I just liked the idea of it. I don't know how to explain myself, I am not really good at it but I am not fooling myself Fred, I swear. I feel so bad, I don't want people to think that I had used him. And I don't want people to think that I have chosen you over him » she said blushing

« Let people talk, at some point they will find something else to talk about anyway. Hermione, you can't blame yourself. Ron will come around, he will understand and find the right woman for him, someone who is going to tell him nights and days how wonderful he is. » affirmed Fred

« You know I think that Lavender really loved him. I feel bad. » And she really was

« Hermione, careful. » warned Fred who did not want Hermione to keep blaming herself

« What, it is right, they had broken up because of me. »

It was Fred's turn to silence the young witch except that instead of removing his hand once Hermione had stopped talking, he cupped her neck and he was stroking her chin with his thumb.

« No, they broke up because my brother is an insensitive prat who did wait for the poor Lavender to break up with him as he did not have the guts to do it or to admit that he was in love with someone else. It is his fault, not yours. Just like the war is Voldemort's fault not yours. You can't fix everything Hermione.»

Hermione had turned a vivid shade of pink and Fred's caress was giving her goosebumps.

« I think I got the message Fred, thanks »

He smiled and finally removed his hand.

« Great. Now help me to get out of this bed, I heard that the cocoa is not that bad at the cafeteria and Thomas has said that I can get out of my bed as long as I don't walk too much. Care to join me. » he asked smiling

« Sure. » she replied

...

She helped him to get out of his bed. Once he was standing in front of her, she giggled, she had forgotten how tall he was compared to her and being that close had reminded her how their height difference used to perturb her. Back to her fifth year she was always wondering how she would manage to kiss him, if their height difference could be a problem to kiss and something more than just kissing.

Fred raised an eyebrow. He asked her what she was thinking about which had made her turned crimson. He winked at her and said that she could admit that she was amazed by his handsomeness.

« I had forgotten how humble you were. » she teased

« Always, it is bad to forget about good manners, isn't it. »

« Absolutely. So Mr Humility should we head back to the cafeteria. » she said giggling

...

Before to go to the cafeteria Hermione had insisted on finding a mediwitch to be sure that Fred could get out of his room. Melissa had confirmed that Fred could get out but when she had brought a wheelchair to the room Fred had replied that he was not going to sit in there.

« I can walk. »

« You should not. » scolded Melissa

Hermione anticipated an upcoming fight between Melissa and Fred by saying that she was going to help her boyfriend. Red as a tomato she wrapped an arm around Fred's waist to help him.

« See I don't need this third age artefact. » smirked Fred who had wrapped Hermione' shoulders with his right arm.

Melissa pointed her index at the couple.

« Fine but if Healer Thomas sees you, it is going to be your problem not mine. Now go before I change my mind. »

They were out of the room in less than a sigh. Hermione had never that close to Fred for so long, her cheeks were burning and she was thinking that her heart was going to get out of her chest, it had never beat like that before.

...

next chapter will be fred/hermione only just before Fred comes back to the burrow


	16. Chapter 14

Here the new chapter.

Next chapter could be tomorrow, Monday or Tuesday.

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...

Hermione spent the entire morning with Fred.

...

For two weeks she had been feeling sad, guilty and angry but with Fred around what she was feeling was totally different. She was feeling clumsy, happy and destabilized. It was like an emotional roller-coaster.

...

They talked about Voldemort, his horcruxes and people's obsession about immortality. The young witch was really enjoying Fred's company. He was being honest, transparent with her and she was troubled by this no-mask-Fred. She had always known that Fred was not an insensitive git but who would have thought that the man behind the prankster could have a vision so deep about life, Hermione would not have imagined it.

Fred had revealed to Hermione that he could not understand people who wanted to live forever.

« I mean what is the point of living forever if you aren't happy. Starting your life all over again so many times for what. I don't want to live in a world where my family, my friends would be dead. »

« Sometimes people are just trying to find happiness. They believe that the longer they live. » She did not finish her sentence.

She wanted to say that if people lived longer, they would be happier but she did not believe that anymore. She wanted to be happy now and Fred's next sentence demonstrated that she really had to focus on her happiness, her own happiness.

« Hermione, I am happy with the life that I have now. I am extremely happy for being alive. Healer Thomas said that I should have died under that wall so I am really grateful but I have no interest of living 500 years as an old man. I know that George and I looked extremely cute when we had a sight of what we are going to look like but still we can not wait to live our lives because you never know what is going to happen next, Carpe Diem» he smiled

She smiled back and nodded. She did not pay attention to Fred's comment about the wall... She was thinking about the ageing potion and how she had warned them...

« Oh the ageing potion, I told you that it would not work out. You never listen to me. » she said smiling but her expression had changed and Fred noticed. She looked disappointed.

« That's because you are too cute when you are angry Miss Perfect Prefect. » teased Fred

She blushed and changed the subject. Fred did not know why she was blushing so much. He thought that it was because of the nickname because his words would not affect her, right, he reassured himself.

...

They talked about the shop for a while. They talked about Fred and George's new products, some products that they were working on like the skiving snackbox II, with sneezing tissues, choco pustules, teaflu and the coughmoresyrup. Fred's face was devilishly joyful.

« I am going back to Hogwarts in September, I want to finish my education. » she said looking into his eyes.

« And. » he smirked without getting her point at first

« And Pr McGonagall has asked me if I want to be the Head Girl. » she revealed

She was playing with her spoon nervously, she wanted to see if Fred was going to get her point or not. She just wanted to play a bit.

« And, what's your point, it would be foolish of McGonagall to do not ask you. I would ask you to be Head Girl. As for going back to school, euh correct me if I am wrong but you do are Hermione Granger right. » said Fred stoned face

« Correct. » smiled Hermione who was a bit disappointed.

She definitely did not know how to tease people. She bit her lips, she had once more certainly enlightened herself as Hogwarts' bookworm in front if Fred. She looked down at her mug of hot chocolate.

Fred frowned, he was disconcerted. He had understood what she meant in between the lines but he could not understand why she seemed so upset. She had been the one who had gone first with the teasing.

« So unless you are thinking about confiscating our products young lady, which would be totally unfair and against our friendship, I don't get your point. »

She raised her gaze again. He winked at her and she blushed again. He had got her point but he was serious so her teasing attempt had failed anyway, thought Hermione

« I am not going to accept McGonagall's offer but I still think that students should not use your products to skive. » she affirmed without any intention of teasing this time. It was supposed to be an harmless sentence to give her opinion. She could not have anticipated Fred's reaction but maybe she should have thought twice before to speak.

« You mean that we should not sell them to the students» retorted Fred who was hurt by her comments. He had thought that her point of view would have changed in two years, apparently he was wrong.

She turned white, Fred was upset. Their conversation was taking an unexpected road. She had to fix it ASAP.

« No. Fred, it is really extraordinary magic and your products are amazing, I just wished that people would not eat a box of puking pastilles every week. Think about your future kids, would you want them to use your products to get out of class. I certainly won't let mine. Education should not be neglected.» she said calmly

She was trying to get herself of the nets that she had created but it was complicated. Dealing with Fred when he was joking was hard but when he was upset or furious it was worst.

And here we are again, thought Fred.

He wished that one day Hermione would stop to see him as just the prankster. George and him were hard workers and he wished that she would see it.

« I won't let mine either, I want my future kids to go to school and to suffer as much as George and I did. If we had not suffer that much during countless boring hours of divination, history of magic or arithmancy, we would have never thought about inventing the skiving snack box but I cannot agree with you Hermione. School is not everything. » he replied coldly

« I did not say that it was. » answered Hermione with a quaking voice.

She sighed, why was she so clumsy. She did not want to fight with Fred, she did not want him to see her as the perpetual killjoy.

...

Fred took the spoon that Hermione still had in her hands, he left it on the mug and took Hermione's hands in his. He no longer had feelings for her but he still wanted to have Hermione in his life and he was ready to open his heart to get Hermione's eternal trust and for that he needed to take off layers of himself, layers of his uncountable masks.

« Do you know what it feels like to be a Weasley, to go to school dressed up with clothes that your older brothers had been wearing before, to never have something new, to never have something yours just because your family doesn't have enough money. »

She shocked her head. She was an only child and money had never been a problem for her, never...

« I had been poor my all life Hermione but I was a happy poor kid. My father had been the laughing stock of the Ministry for so many years but he has never cared because he loves his job. Today, George and I have more money than we could have ever imagined and we are happy but even if we weren't rich, we would still be happy because we are doing something that we love and we do not need a batch of NEWTS for it. And just for the record the smart boy of the family had been the first to turn his back on us when we needed him the most so no, I don't rely on people's grades and neither should you.» he explained coolly

She tried to explain him that he had misunderstood her. She said that she knew that education was not everything but Fred interrupted her. He had wanted to have that talk for so long and he finally had the chance to make Hermione see life under another angle, from his angle. He did not care about people's opinion except hers. Her opinion mattered and he did not want her to forever see him as the joker who had left school without graduating.

« Education is everything for you but education does not define you. Hermione, do you think that I am worthless because I have never finished school, do you think that Harry is or Ron. » he asked terribly serious

« I don't think that the Ministry would have signed an exclusivity contract with you if you were worthless. They would not have chosen you as their official suppliers. » she affirmed with a wide grin

Fred shocked his head

« You haven't replied to my question. I don't care about the Ministry. I am asking you, your opinion. »

She took a deep breath and retained his hands in hers. She was looking into his hazel eyes, this conversation was unexpected but she had to take advantage of the situation to make Fred understand that she had always admired him.

« Education is important I am not going to deny that but having good grades doesn't mean that one is going to become the future Minister. I know that Fred and I am sorry if I have offended you. You and George are genius with an endless imagination and your products are brilliant but I still think that students should not use them so often. And you are certainly not worthless. I started to develop feelings for you because I was amazed by your confidence, your determination and your products. Ginny once said that growing up with you as help her to believe that nothing is impossible and she is damn right. When you are around it does seem that everything is possible.»

A weak smile appeared on his face. She smiled back and started to play with his fingers, they were so long compared to hers.

...

« Fred I don't want to fight with you. Tell me more about the shop, please, about your products. I like to see your face when you talk about it. Your happiness is contagious Fred and I really did not want to hurt your feelings. » she stated

He wanted to say something, he wanted to say that he believed her but she was not done yet

« Your products saved my life and not just mine. Harry, Ron and I would have been arrested at the Ministry if Harry had not used a decoy detonator. Actually, we would have never broken into the Ministry without one of your pastilles. We were stuck and your magic had opened the doors that were locked. You are precious Fred. I know that we had our differents but I really don't want to fight with you and back to your last year at school, I was often mad at you but not for the reasons that you think. »

Her cheeks had turned red again but she was not the only one blushing.

« I was struggling against my feelings for you. I did not want anybody to find out so I had to keep snapping at you. I was scared of your reaction until last year at Bill and Fleur's wedding. I had always believed that you would make fun of me in front of everybody. I would have never imagined that you could have feelings for me too.» she confessed

...

Fred would have not insisted that much if he had known where it would have drive him. At the wedding, a year ago, he had told Hermione to do not think about any what if, his wish was still the same. Thinking that he could have had her, that this extraordinary young woman could have been his girlfriend and that they could still be together was still terribly painful. And he could not stop to think about the lucky man who would have the chance to make Hermione his always&forever love.

He sighed and removed his hands from hers. Her touch was making him feel things that he could not feel.

« We had been two idiots but let's let the past where it belongs » he decreed

« Alright but we are still friends, aren't we. I don't want to loose you Fred. » insisted Hermione

« I am not going anywhere and I am not mad at you my friend. » he said insisting on the last word

Saying that Fred had been touched by Hermione's words was an understatement. A compliment from Hermione was worth more than all the money that he had earned since they had opened the shop. Considering that they had gotten a benefit of 50000 galleons each, Hermione's compliment really meant the world to him.

He really had to hide his trouble so he started to talk about the clean kit with the dirty hands soaps and the snivellus hair mask and somehow Hermione was also relieved to talk about something else.

This conversation had given her goosebumps or maybe it was just Fred's presence. She shocked her head, no it could not be that, she was over him, had been for a long time, she reassured herself

...

« We are still working on this kit though. We need two more products before to start commercializing the box. But we've have started to sell the soap. » specified Fred who was back to his normal self

« Please don't tell me that you are going to bring this box at the Burrow. Ginny is going to kill you if you try the snivellus hair mask on her. » declared a worried Hermione

Fred smirked grew wider. Hermione hit her forehead with her right hand.

« I am stupid, you already did of course. » she stated

Fred nodded chuckling

« We needed a volunteer, something rather hard to find lately. »

« You are going to tests all your products at the Burrow during you month of recovery, aren't you. » she asked concerned

« Come on Hermione, I need to rest but if I were you, I would keep away any product that you might have in the bathroom and you have to promise that you won't tell anybody» he said pointing his index at Hermione

« And why should I do that » she asked perplexed

« Because I am asking you too. » he replied mischievously

She crossed her arms on her chest and said that it was not enough. Fred's eyes were devilishly sparkling

« Because deep down you love our products and you know that you are going to enjoy the show and I might have a very old potions book that I could let you borrow. » he announced proudly

« You have a copy of Morgan's potions and enchantments. » she asked terribly troubled by this revelation. She had been looking for this book for edges.

« Indeed. Mundungus can be useful sometimes. » he answered calmly as if this was no big news.

« Are you sure it is a real copy. » she was trying to hide the passion and agitation that was submerging her.

« hundred percent sure. So deal. » He offered Hermione his hand. She shook his hand with a wide grin.

« Deal. I've always wanted to know more about the medieval potions that had been prohibited after the Middle Age. » she said with goosebumps all over her body again.

...

Hours flew and before they could realized it was time for Fred to go back to his room for lunch.

...

Hermione left in a hurry as the Weasleys would be coming during their lunch break, Molly and Ron included. She really did not want to but she had to. The situation was geeting a bit more ridiculous day after day but she had nowhere else to go, she could not leave the Burrow, it was too dangerous. Also, she did not if the fact that in few days Fred would be home was a good thing or a very bad thing.

At least Ron was busy with the training but Hermione could smell fights... Who knew what he could tell about Hermione to his brother...

She shocked her head, why would Fred believe Ron, he had no reason to and Ron's arguments had no crux

...

She passed the doors of St Mungo with a wide grin on her face. It had been so pleasant to talk about something that was not the war, the dead, Death Eaters... She had laughed a lot and she had the feeling that even the sky was brighter.

She had missed George but she would apologize later. She was thinking to stop by Diagon Alley to have lunch at the Leaky Cauldron anyway.

She could not go back to the hospital until 4pm, she would have time to stop by the shop after lunch. With a radiant smile she disapparated to Diagon Alley, she was feeling alive again.


	17. Chapter 15

New chapter

this is the last chapter with Fred at the hospital. In two chapters I will have to change the rating from T to M.

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Let me know what you think of this one :)

xx

...

The rest of the week passed so fast for Hermione that before she could realize it was already Saturday.

Saturday 23rd of May, it was 3 weeks after the battle, 3 weeks after she had modified time without knowing what would the consequences be, 3 weeks after she had decided to follow her heart. Was her life different, yes, but how different was her life, she could not tell.

Everything around her was changing so fast but were things really changing, not really.

...

Harry and Ginny were together but the passion of the first few days had faded and they were now trying to deal with their feelings, trying to heal. Harry like Hermione had a lot to accept, he needed time to forgive himself but Ginny was impatient. She was tired of waiting so they were arguing, a lot...

Molly was trying to control everything, arguing with Fleur for no reason...

Percy, Fleur and Bill had gone back to their houses and some days Charlie and George were sleeping at the twins apartment.

Ron was Ron but at least he was enjoying his money and fame.

After all, one member of the trio had to celebrate, to be enjoying life except that Ron was not happy, he was heartbroken. Chasing the bad guys and partying were just helping him to do not think about Hermione, about Hermione and Fred spending time together, laughing together. It was painful to see how happy Hermione looked when she was talking about his brother but what hurt the most was the fact that Hermione was still denying.

...

A couple of nights ago, Ginny had told Ron that Hermione was not denying anything.

« She is fooling herself which is worst but you need to move on Ron. I think that she reallly wanted to love you but she really has put that behind her and you should do the same. Some things aren't meant to be. And you can't be mad at her for having feelings for another man. »

« But what does it have to be him, what does it have to be Fred. Why can not it be just another guy like Dean, Seamus or even that prat of Cormac. » had replied a hurt and desperate Ron

« Because that would be too simple. Look Ron for now she doesn't want to admit that she still has feelings for him and you should stop to push in that direction. You should focus on your life, not hers. Fred is going to spend a month here, who knows what can happen between them, move on Ron. » had insisted Ginny

Ron had replied that he was ready to try though his attitude towards Hermione had remained the same. Three words: fighting, ignoring and avoiding...

...

From the outside it did not look like someone had started to write a new chapter of their lives like Pr Flitwick had suggested after the battle.

Actually, Hermione was starting to think that she might be the only one who had started to write something on a clean white page. She had made several decisions, important ones. It was true that she still did not know how to live a normal life or what a normal life really meant for her but she was working on that and the presence of Fred was helping her.

Each day he was telling her to do something that she wanted to but that she had not done yet because of some excuses that she had herself set. So far, she had bought a walkman and few cds to reconnect with her Muggle self. Thanks to Fred who was insisting on the fact that being a Muggle born was a priviledge, she was not shutting down her Muggle self and needs anymore.

« Come on Hermione be proud, washing machine, movies, telephone, gel and strip poker, if Muggles aren't genius then tell me what they are. » had commented Fred with a smirk

...

She had eaten sweets, Fred had enjoyed a snickers, which had made her think about her parents and old happy memories like when her grandmother was buying her sweets and she was hiding them in her nightstand so her parents could not take the sweets away from her.

« See Hermione, you have always been a ruler breaker, and a very good one. » had laughed Fred

...

And she had owled Pr McGonagall to inform her that she had no interest of becoming Head Girl.

« You are right Head Girl is not good enough for you Mrs the future Minister of Magic. If you sign a law against our skiving snackbox, I will come to your office and paint it in pink. » they both had bursted out laughter after that one.

...

Indeed Fred was right, that dream of becoming Head Girl belonged to someone else, someone that was not her anymore because what Fred had told her was right.

« Everything has changed, everything and everybody, we all have scars either they are physical or mental or both and we just can't pretend to live as if nothing had happened or moving on trying to forget about what had happened. No, what we have to do is to focus on our own happiness and educate our children better than we have been. To teach our children to be tolerant and to learn from people's different background instead of judging, eh who knows maybe they should abolish the sorting hat's reign. We are all a bit of each house, aren't we. » he had said seriously

And Hermione had liked the idea. Of course it was impossible to imagine Hogwarts without its four prestigious houses but weren't those houses the beginning of everything. Weren't people judge and put in different boxes because of the house where they had been sent. Hermione did not know how this could be changed but she really liked the idea and its meaning.

Each day Fred was fascinating Hermione a bit more. She wanted to live, with him, in this world that they were talking about.

...

Hermione was on her way to St Mungo, she had left Hogwarts, where the reconstruction work was almost finished, right after lunch. She wanted to spend a bit of time with Fred, just with Fred.

On the following day, he would be back at the Burrow with everybody else and Hermione wanted to have him just for herself one last time.

...

Over the last few days, she had passed her morning at St Mungo. She was arriving just on time to see George every morning, just before he left to go to open the shop. Molly was busy on the morning and so were the rest of the members of the family so Hermione knew that she had about three hours of peace. Three hours with Fred, three hours during which she was laughing a lot, enjoying life and in peace with herself.

Fred was not asking her questions. Unlike everybody else, Andromeda excluded, Fred was not pushing her to know what was going in her head and she really appreciated it.

And since she was feeling safe with him, she had opened her heart to him about few things like her kisses with Ron, how she had felt, how she thought that she should have felt, her perception about what should be done to avoid a new war...

She had even shared her how she was feeling towards Dumbledore. She was not ready yet to talk about the months that she had spent with Harry and Ron hunting the horcruxes, she still needed time to let it sink deeper but she knew that she could trust Fred, that he would never tell a word to Harry about it.

Hermione was mad at the old man for so many reasons. She was also feeling stupid for jumping in that crazy plan without asking Harry few questions before to abandon everything they had.

« We weren't prepared, we thought that we were but we weren't. Three teenagers trying to think like him, Voldemort. We had to try to understand his highly disturbed mind to get an idea about what the next horcruxes could be, where he could have hidden them but you know what, we had no bloody idea and you know why Fred, because we did not know Voldemort, we had no idea who he was. Dumbledore had known him. I would say that he had known him better than everybody else because he had met Voldemort before he became Voldemort. He had met Tom Jedusor and he knew his strengths and weaknesses but there is only one Dumbledore and it was foolish of him to think that we could finish something that he had started. »

« But you did. » replied Fred with a smile. He did not want Hermione to keep thinking that the Golden Trio had not done anything to save the wizarding community.

« It had taken us 10 months Fred and to finish Dumbledore's work we had to involve innocent students, all the members of the Order and so much more persons into the worst battle that the British wizarding community had ever faced. So are you sure that we really did it. Not because we did destroy the horcruxes mean that we should be the one to venerate, actually we had not even destroyed all the horcruxes ourselves. Neville and Voldemort had destroyed the last ones. So what did we do, three horcruxes in ten months, compared to the 300 persons who had lost their lives it seems pretty thin to get the guilt out of my head. » she had sincerely explained

Fred had been trying to make her understand that she was not guilty but the young woman was stubborn. Fred could feel her distress and unlike everybody else he had managed to get into her head and he was getting closer to the truth day after day.

Fred had the intuition that there was definitely something that was dragging her down, something that she was scared to talk about. He had started to put pieces together and he was sure that Hermione had done something that she should not have, something like being in two places at one to save his life, only his life. She was always mentioning the dead as if they were dead because of her and Fred was convinced that Hermione was blaming herself for saving just one life.

He did not know how to tell her, how to get a confirmation but he was working on it. As for why Hermione had decided to save only his life, he had forbidden himself to think about it as long as he would not have Hermione's confession.

...

As Fred was not in his room, Hermione went to the last floor where the playground area for the kids was, right next to the cafeteria. And there he was in his purple t-shirt that had the logo of their shop stamped on it. He was helping one of the children to finish a puzzle. He was probably cracking some jokes, the little boy could not stop laughing. She observed them, standing in the door frame, for a while.

The little boy saw her first and he elbowed Fred. The redhead raised his gaze and smiled when he saw who was there. He told the little boy to excuse him for a moment.

« Hey Fred. The mediwitches said that I should find you here. » she said when Fred was finally next to her.

« Yes, I found this place by accident the other day and I like to come here. Those poors kids have lost everything. They are waiting for someone, anybody to come for them even though they know that they don't have family left. You see that little blonde girl there with the pink tshirt. Death Eaters came to her house, her mother had put her in the chimney and she had sent her here with the last handful of floo powder. The little girl was living with her grandmother and mother, her only relatives alive, she is three and her father had already been murdered in front of her. She was hidden into an old cabinet. » explained Fred as they were walking on the hallway

« But those kids are full of hope and life. I was complaining about my rehab program the other day and a little boy, a four years old boy had been comforting me. Some things are worth fighting for.» He said with a smile but Hermione was not smiling.

She was not even walking. Her back was leaning on the white wall. Tears were falling on her cheeks. The images of those kids, what they had been through, it was too much for her. She could handle death but not this.

« Hermione why are you crying. » asked Fred who had instinctively cupped Hermione's face into his hands.

« I feel so guilty all the time Fred. I thought that the feeling would go away but it is getting worst. We were in our fucking tent trying to destroy a horcruxe and fighting and complaining all day when we should have been here with all of you fighting. We had been gone for 10 months, almost a year and my only preoccupation was to make sure that Harry was ok. He is my best friend but sometimes I do wonder if his life was really more important than the lives that could have been saved. I don't mean that he should have died, of course not, but all those persons who had lost their lives, all those orphans was it really necessary. I am sorry for rambling but it is consuming me. »

Fred was drying her tears with his fingers. It was painful for him to see her like that.

«Hermione listen to me carefully. It was war and in the end you did save us all. Voldemort is dead thanks to you and Super boy. Super boy had killed Voldemort and only him could do it. There is always collateral damages, always but none of this is your fault. People weren't fighting for Harry and you and my brother to be safe while looking for the horcruxes, people were fighting for their ideals, for a better tomorrow and then we had those fighting with Voldemort, fucking idiots, because they believed that he was right, not because of you or Harry. You had been placed in the middle of this but it doesn't mean that you are responsible. Voldemort is. Voldemort had started this war, you had just finished it. »

« Then why do I feel like a deserter. » she said in a broken voice.

She let herself fall on the cold floor. Fred sat next to her. Unsure at first, he finally took Hermione in his arms. He was fondling her hair while he was comforting her.

« Because you are brave and sensitive and we have lost people that we loved. Even if you had been here with us, it would not have been enough to save all of them. You need to forget yourself Hermione. Nobody is blaming you but you are. » he said gently

He thought that maybe she would read between the lines. She, kind of, did but she did not want to talk about what she had done just yet.

« I just feel so alone. Harry is chasing the bad guys but I can't. I don't want to fight anymore, I want to live. Things have to change, we need to change laws and rules but I don't think that to keep fighting is going to drive us anywhere. »

« Well I would love to see Dolohov and company in Azkaban. » admitted Fred

« That's not what I meant and you know it. I want them in Azkaban too. But now it is running after them, and after something else will come up, as long as we don't change the laws, as long as the wizarding world does not open its eyes a bit more, we are always going to live with the risk of a new Voldemort. I can't stop thinking about what you had told me the other day and I am not talking about your disappointment when you had seen that I had bought The Spice Girls CD.»

Fred chuckled and kissed her forehead. Hermione had frozen but her cheeks were burning. She wrapped her arms around his waist and hide her face in Fred's chest to hide her trouble. Fred was still fondling her hair.

« Mrs the Minister I agree with you and I am sure that as soon as you are going to start working at the department of Magical Law Enforcement you are going to revolution our world. And don't worry, I will be waiting for you at the doors of the ministry with fireworks. »

She moved and raised her head to look into his eyes

« I like that. » she said with a smile. She could easily picture it, she even pictured Fred kissing her at the doors of the Ministry which made her hide her face again. She had to talk about something otherwise the vision of that kiss would be stuck in her head all day.

« So are you ready to come back to the Burrow for a month. » she asked

He took her chin and forced her to look at him.

« I am as long as mum doesn't babysit me too much. I am counting on you to help me to escape from her. » he said with a smirk

She cleared her throat she had to tell him something.

« Your father had asked me to help him at the Ministry. Apparently they need help with some Muggle's objects. I am pretty sure that your mother is behind it. I will be with you on the afternoon but on the morning, I am afraid that I will have to help your father but I cannot really say no. I have nowhere else to go.» she confessed.

« Can't you just go home, to your parents house. » he asked. He had been asking himself this question so many times...

Hermione was looking into Fred's eyes. She was ready to talk about it. She told him that at the moment she did not have parents. Fred shocked his head, he was confused.

« What does that mean, are they mad at you for leaving or something like this. »

It had to be something like that because he had never seen the names of her parents on the list of dead. Yes he knew the name of her parents, Jane and Marc Granger.

« No they cannot be mad at me, to be mad at me they would have to remember me first. » she murmured

Fred's eyes were wide opened

« Are you saying what I am thinking that you are saying. »

She nodded. Fred asked her where they were. She shrugged.

« In Australia, I suppose. I sent them there. Kingsley has sent a couple of Aurors to look for them. » she revealed relieved to finally have someone to talk about it. Someone who was not Harry.

He asked her what had happened to her house.

« I am waiting for Kingsley to give me his green light before to go there. At the moment, he thinks that with Dolohov, Lestrange, Rookwood and Greyback on the run it is a very bad idea for me to go back there or even to send someone there. » she sighed.

« I like to disagree with the Minister not matter who he is but this time I think he is right. » said Fred who could tell that Hermione's was annoyed by Kingsley's decision.

She looked away and sighed. She admitted that she knew that Kingsley was right. She added that she was missing her parents and that there was a chance for her to get her parents and their memories back.

...

With that confession Fred had gotten almost all the answers that he needed to help Hermiome. He kissed her forehead again and told her that she was not alone.

« I am sure that they are going to find your parents, you need to have faith and until then I am going to teach you how to enjoy boredom and maybe life itself » he said smirking

« Am I gonna be in trouble. » she asked giggling

« Aren't you always in trouble. » stated Fred

She rolled her eyes before to laugh. She punched his shoulder.

« You know my way of being in trouble is way more fun» he replied with the mischevious sparks in his eyes.

Hermione's laugh intensified. She was scared and looking forward at the same time to spend even more time with Fred but for now she did not want to think about it, she was just too comfortable in his strong arms. The floor was cold as ice but she did not want to move at all, she wished that they could stay like this forever.

She closed her eyes and ducked her head so she could listen to Fred's hearbeats. Fred had also closed his eyes, he was fondling her hair with his right hand and stroking her back with his left hand.

Both were thinking about something less innocent but as in the past they did not say a word about their deepest thoughts. After all, they were convinced that the other was not feeling anything anymore and they were also sure that their own feelings weren't resurfacing and if they were thinking what they were thinking it was only because they had dreamed about the other's arms for so long that it could never leave them cold.

...

Next chapter will be before the weekend Thursday probably.

2 spoilers about next chapter Fred/George/Molly and the first talk between Hermione and Fred at the burrow


	18. Chapter 16

New chapter

PinkFlowersAndRedBarons welcome :)

Jartean197 welcome :)

FantasyGirl20 3 3

I am still looking for a Beta :)

xx

...

On Sunday 24th Fred was finally ready to leave the hospital.

He had the feeling that he had been at St Mungo for an eternity even if he had been conscious only one of the three weeks that he had been there. Those two weeks in coma were the worst for Fred because he was thinking about all those things that he could have done in those two weeks.

Moreover, if he had not been in coma for so long, he would not have to go to the Burrow and spend a month there. If he had not been in coma, he would be living his life with George, working at the shop, going out at night with his friends... but if he had not been in coma, he would not have had the chance to see Hermione each day, to get to know her better and that was something that he had dreamed of for so long that he just could not wait to be at the Burrow and to spend even more time with her.

He was looking forward to teach her how to enjoy life because frankly speaking she did not know how to do it.

He did not know why but it seemed that Hermione had decided to give a real chance to their friendship and Fred had never felt luckier. She had always fascinated him...

...

Fred finished to button his light pink shirt with a smirk, he could already hear Hermione warning him or asking him fifty times per day if they were going to be in trouble...

Obviously, spending time with the young witch could become problematic but Fred had promised to himself to do not try anything, in case he would start to feel something again, unless Hermione would send him love signals.

However spending a month at the Burrow was gonna be hard because of Ron. Fred did not know what to expect or how he should react in front of Ron's insinuations.

If Ron decided that it was about time to have another fight, what should he do. George had warned him about Ron's crazy fantasies and Fred had noticed how mad was Ron everytime he had come to St Mungo to see him so Fred was expecting Ron to lay it on thick as soon as he would be home but Fred did not know if he could control himself. Hermione was having a hard time, Ron was being totally unfair with her but Hermione was ignoring him, she was trying, but Fred knew that he would not be able to do such thing...

And then of course there was their mother. Fred loved his mother, she was not a nasty woman as long as things were working out the way that she wanted so Fred already knew that Molly would do her best to find excuses to keep Hermione away from him. She had already succeeded as Hermione was going to go with his father to the Ministry on the morning to help him to identify the function of Muggle's objects.

what a pathetic excuse had thought Fred.

He had never told his mother about the feelings that he used to have for Hermione. Over the last few days, he had been thinking about telling her but he had already changed his mind.

A confession would not change anything because for his mother Hermione should have become, one day, Mrs Ronald Weasley and not Mrs Frederik Weasley. Fred was pretty sure that his mother would never become a fremione supporter and he had not need George, to kind of, confirm it, he had known it for years and it hurt, somehow.

So yes Fred was sure that Molly would not approve their friendship either and that she would always be spying on them however after twenty years, Fred perfectly knew how to get away from his mother.

In a nutshell, Fred could not wait to be at the Burrow. Moreover, he had so many products to tests on his family that in less than a week, probably, all the inhabitants of the Burrow, Hermione excluded of course, would be mad at him and George.

...

George, Arthur and Molly had left the Burrow around 11am to pick up Fred.

They were so happy that they could not stop smiling. Deep down, they all had been terrified about the idea of loosing Fred, they all had believed, at some point, that he would not make it.

Arthur was a bit preoccupied about Healer in Chief Thomas's opinion regarding Fred, Thomas was one of the best Healer and if he believed that Fred should have died, it certainly was because Fred should have and Arthur was worrying about that what or whom that had saved Fred's life.

He had no clue about who, why or what it had been so he just hoped that whatever it had been, it would not have dramatic consequences later on.

At first, he had believed that Hermione had something to do with it. If someone could cast an ancient shield charm, it was definitely her and it would have explained why she had been spending so much time at the hospital but then Arthur, as the rest of the family, had heard the fight that she had with Ron and he had learnt about Hermione's feelings for Fred.

Of course, those feelings were old and Hermione had told Molly that she no longer had feelings for Fred but still for Arthur it had been enough to get Hermione out of his lists of suspects.

...

At the hospital Molly was raging about the party that she was organizing. She wanted to have a party on the following Saturday or Sunday with all Fred and George's friends, specially the girls. She was still determined to find out who was the girl that Fred had been in love with and she was convinced that organizing a party was the best way to find out.

Since her wedding plans between Ron and Hermione had been destroyed by Hermione, Molly needed to think about another possible wedding. Ginny was still too young, she was only sixteen and she had to finish school first. Charlie, she had given up. Percy, she did not know if he was still seeing Penelope or not or if there was someone else but anyway she believed that Percy was not ready yet. Ron was not over Hermione and Molly feared that it would take him a long time to get over the young witch.

So basically, she had just two more candidates, Fred and George. Fred more than George. She knew that George was madly in love with Angelina and that like Ron with Hermione, George would need time, very long, probably years, to get over Angelina. But with Fred, it was different, she knew that he wanted to have kids and a family on his own. He had mentioned it several times during Tonk's pregnancy.

Fred had a job, money, friends, the only thing that was missing in his life was a woman and Molly was going to take advantage of the presence of Fred at the Burrow to introduce him to a lot of young women, if the woman that he had been in love with was really out of the picture of course. If there was still a chance to get Fred and the woman that he had been in love with together, Molly was ready to work on that.

...

Molly was looking at her sons with a wide grin on her face.

« So Fred, George apart from Lee, Alicia, Katie, Angelina and Verity, should I invite someone else. » she asked

« No. » replied Fred and George at the same time. They looked at each other and rolled their eyes, they had got the idea of what their mother was looking though they did not know who Molly wanted to marry in that moment.

« Fred have you heard anything from Sophie. » asked Molly innocently

Fred sighed, he was the one on the wedding list this time. George chuckled. As his twin, he was also looking forward to see what would happen during that month at the Burrow.

As for Arthur rolled his eyes, Molly could be so stubborn...

...

Fred looked into his mother eyes, his gaze was inscrutable.

« No and I don't think that she wants to talk to me and I have nothing to say to her either. » he answered coldly

« So I don't have to send an owl to anybody else right, Verity maybe she has some friends that could come. Would not hurt to meet new people, right boys » argued Molly who had been taken aback by Fred's iced comment

« Whatever you want Mum, we don't care. » said George before Fred could tell their mother to get stuffed

...

Melissa interrupted the conversation, she was holding a box with Fred's personal effects. Fred froze. He had not been thinking about it since he had awoken but his wallet was in the box and he wondered if someone had opened it.

He took the small orange leather object from the box. He opened it carefully, he had put something in it just before to leave for Hogwarts and that little thing falling right in front of his parents and George would definitely not be a good thing. He did not want to have to justify himself, specially not in front of George. He did not want to deal with mother either, it would be worst than to deal with George.

...

Fred frowned, it was not there anymore.

« Something wrong Fred. » asked Molly worriedly

« Yes, euh I mean no. Well I am ready to leave. » lied Fred who was very preoccupied. Besides, he knew that he could not ask anything. He had to pretend that everything was fine.

« Are you sure you are alright, is there something missing. » insisted Molly

« Mum, everything is fine. » scolded Fred

Why did his mother always need to get her nose everywhere, it was always annoying him, so much.

...

They left the room and Fred went with George to sign some papers at the reception while Molly and Arthur were speaking with Healer in Chief Thomas and the mediwitches about Fred's rehabilitation and treatment.

...

As Fred was signing the last paper George decided to tell him the truth about what was missing.

« It is back to its original place, in your room, third drawer on the left with your socks. »

Fred dropped the pen and looked into George's eyes, he was relieved that to learn that George was the person who had taken it but he was also flustered.

« Gosh, why did not you say anything before. »

« You had not asked. » shrugged George. He was surprised by Fred's reaction as much as he had been stupefied when he had seen the picture when he had opened Fred's wallet after his transfer to St Mungo.

« Because I had forgotten about it. » replied Fred honestly.

Indeed, he had not think about it until now and if he had not seen his wallet, he would not have remembered.

« Well it does make sense why would you think about it when you have the original, in the flesh, in front of you each day. Which makes me wonder what the hell, when did you put it there » replied George sharply

Fred was scratching the back of his neck and wondering how he would get out of this one. It was a tricky one.

« You remember when Remus and Kingsley came to tell us that Harry, Ron and Hermione were at Hogwarts and that we must get ready for whatever would come. »

George nodded, how could he ever forget about that. This moment was gonna be forever engraved in his memory.

« Well when Kingsley said that if we had any lucky charm or talisman or something that could help us that we should take it. »

Again George nodded

« Remember, we went to the shop to take some of our products well I had something else in mind. I did not go to the loo, I went to my room. We did not know if we were going to make it or not and I did not want to die without her. I know it is ridiculous but don't tell me that you had not thought about Angelina when we had left. It doesn't mean anything, I just needed a part of her with me» confessed Fred who's ears were red

George was not shocked, he had imagined something like that when he had found that picture but listening Fred confirming everything was really confusing for George.

« You have a really strange way of demonstrating that you are over her. Fred for your information, I did not run to my room to take a picture of the woman that I love to put it in my wallet as a lucky charm. If you were really over her, you would not have taken a picture of her. »

« And what should have I done. » asked Fred

« Burn it Fred, this what you should have done. » replied George wrathfully. He automatically apologized, he did not want to fight with his twin.

Maybe their mother was right and they should meet new persons, women because they were both hopeless. For George the worst was seeing Fred denying that he was still in love with Hermione because maybe when he would finally admit that he was not over her, it would be too late, again. George did not hate Hermione but he had hated to see Fred suffering because of her for almost two years.

« I am worried about you Fred, you are going to spend a month at the Burrow, she lives there.»

« We are just friends Georgie, relax. » interrupted Fred

He reassured George for the thousandth time, George nodded but did not believe a word of Fred's charade.

...

As they were finally leaving the hospital, using floo powder, Fred could not apparate yet, Fred was thinking about his dreams. He wanted to tell George about the fact that he believed that Hermione had saved him but George would only think that Fred had been hallucinating and they would ending up fighting because of Hermione Granger again.

...

In the meantine, at the Burrow Hermione was nervous. She was trying to read but she had been reading the same sentence for more than an hour already. She was wondering how life would be with Fred around all the time. She wanted to have a girls talk with Ginny but she did not want Ginny to get a wrong idea.

She closed her book and looked at the clock, it was almost noon, they should be there soon. Her heart had already started to beat faster. What was she suppose to do once they would be there, give Fred a hug, shake his hand, do nothing. This girlish attitude was not very Hermione Granger but she was so stressed that she could not control her emotions.

And of course, Ron was sat in front of her, his eyed on her all the time.

Annoyed Hermione sighed, it would be just for a month. Just one more month at the Burrow. Indeed, she had gladly accepted Andromeda's offer, with Harry, to move in with her as soon as Grimmauld Place would be totally renovated which should in a month approximately. Andromeda had asked them, the previous day, when they were all at Hogwarts. She had told Harry and Hermione that they could move at the end of June.

A month like the time that Healer in Chief Thomas had ordered Fred to stay at the burrow to rest. Hermione hoped that this month would not awoken old feelings that had been really hard to make disappear. Even if they reappeared, she knew that she would have to find the strength to do not fall again unless of course Fred would showed any sign of relapse too.

...

next chapter saturday


	19. Chapter 17

New chapter, sorry for the delay. I had been travelling for a week and internet was not super good..

JayBat welcome :)

1 welcome :)

and Brunettebookworm18 welcome :)

Next chapter is a clue one, I will post it this week but I need time to re read it. Because a lot is going to happen and I need to be sure that everything is well connected.

Let me know your thoughts on this one please.

xx

...

When Molly, Arthur, Fred and George arrived at the Burrow, Fred got a hug, several indeed, from all his siblings, yes Ron included.

Fred shared a hug with Harry as well. Harry had been so worried about Fred, not as much as Hermione or George of course but still he had been anxiously waiting for Fred to wake up.

...

Harry needed Fred to wake up to forgive himself. Like Hermione, the feeling of guilt was not leaving him, not even for a minute but with Fred standing in front of him with his mischievous smirk on his face, Harry knew that he would finally be able to start to write on this new white page that Pr Flitwick had been talking about.

Harry would have never been able to handle a Weasley death, those people were more than just his family. Thanks to the Weasleys he had learnt what to have a family meant and he would never forget that. With the return of Fred at the Burrow, Harry could finally let Ginny in, until now he had not let her totally in, which was upsetting the beautiful redhead and had been the motive of several fights.

Harry was just trying to protect himself, in case something would have happened to Fred. He had not lied to Hermione when he had told her that if Fred died, he would leave the Burrow, the Weasleys and Ginny. He loved Ginny so much that it was scarring him and for this exact reason, he would have never accepted to read pain in her eyes again. He had made her suffer enough already.

He could not express everything with words so after hugging Fred, he turned to Ginny and hugged her as well and murmured the three words that Ginny had been desperate to hear, for years...

« I love you too Harry » murmured Ginny into Harry's ear.

...

Fred who was, in that moment, hugging Charlie made a typical Fred Weasley comment which made everybody laugh.

« Seriously, I almost died under that stupid wall but eh you know what guys, it doesn't matter what you do because Super Boy will always still the limelight from everyone else. Harry, I know that you've already got a hint of what will happen to you if you break our dear little sister heart, well let me add something, George and I are still selling the amazing Jinx Off pack, hat, gloves and cloak. We could lend you one because expelliarmus won't work against the lioness. »

« Yes mate compared to her, Voldy and his morons were just a bunch of baboons. » added George

Of course Ginny replied and suddenly the Burrow was immersed into its habitual cacophony that Arthur had to stop. Molly was way too happy to reprimand them.

...

Fred had almost finished his hug's tour, there was only one person left, Hermione.

She was standing next to the chimney, with her wild curls in a bun her face was visible and so was her awkwardness. She still had her book in her hands when Fred approached and as clumsy as you could wish she hit Fred's head with her book when she first tried to wrap her arms around his neck.

She stepped back. She was as red as a tomato. She apologized which made Fred smirked. He took the book and threw it on the couch.

« I think someone still owes me a hug. » he said bending down so his eyes could meet hers

She could not step back, her back was already touching the cold stone of the chimney. She met his gaze and smiled timidly before to finally snuggle into Fred's chest.

...

Hermione really wanted two things, to disappear and to stay in Fred's arms forever. She did not know what to do. Molly's words were resonating into her head. She did not want to be a source of disharmony. The last thing that she wanted was to see Fred and Ron fighting because of her. It was not just about Molly or what she had told Hermione, it was about the fact that Ron was still living into his own paranoia and Hermione knew how thick he could become. Ron had promised Ginny to make an effort but so far nothing had changed.

Hermione had lived similar situations twice already, when she was with Krum and when Ron had left her and Harry because he believed that she was in love with Harry. But this time, it was worst for many reasons. Ron really believed that she had rejected him because she was in love with his brother, he was also convinced that something was going between her and Fred. But what was really infuriating Ron was the fact that he had thought that Hermione was his and that those two kisses had sealed their destinies forever.

She had accepted Ron's madness and anger, after so many years she knew how to deal with him but Fred had not done anything and Hermione really did not want to see him involve into this feud. Besides, she did not want Fred to think that she was chasing still after him. She needed him too much to put in jeopardy their friendship.

Unfortunately, she had no plan yet and until then she knew that she would have to avoid Fred, at least when Ron was around. Ron had won the first battle but Hermione was smarter and she was determined to win that cold war.

...

Harry as the rest of the Weasleys and Andromeda looked at Hermione and Fred sharing a quick embrace but compared to many Harry was smiling. A clumsy Hermione was definitely not something that he had seen often and he really liked to see that part of her.

Harry did not believe Ron and his silliness but he had to admit that his point view had changed since he had gotten the confirmation from Hermiome herself, during one of their lunches with Andromeda, that she really did have a big crush on Fred when she was 15 and 16 years old and that Fred did have a crush on her too at the same time.

He had no opinion about it. He liked Fred and he considered the twins as very closed friends, probably his best friends after Ron and Hermione so as long as Hermione and Fred were happy, he did not care about what could happen between them. Deep down, he could even picture them together. Harry believed that they could balance each other's, somehow their personalities fitted. He could not explain why, he could just see them together and Hermione definitely needed someone who could enlighten her days.

Harry could not understand the reluctance of Molly or the anger of Ron. It was not like if Hermione and Ron had been dating for years and she had suddenly ditch him for his older brother.

So far nothing had happened between Fred and Hermione or Ron and Hermione, except those two kisses but those kisses could not really count, so for Harry if someone had really heard Ron and Hermiome's wedding bells, that person must be seen...

...

Hermione could feel all the Weasleys gazes on them. When they pulled apart, she turned red and without looking at anybody, she excused herself and went outside.

« I haven't fed Crookshanks today. He must be starving. »

Some of the Weasleys like Ginny or Charlie and Fred obvisouly were surprised by her reaction. After spending way too much time at the hospital , they would have thought that Hermione would constantly stay with Fred, not run away from him. However, Harry was not surprised, he knew Hermione better than them. And he knew Ron...

Andromeda was not surprised either.

Obviously the Weasleys looked at Ron and then they understood. Ginny, Charlie and Percy rolled their eyes. As for Fred, he put his hands in his pockets to keep them away from Ron's neck. He had lost Hermione because of his little brother once already, he would not loose her again because of him. He was angry, so angry that he rapidly excused himself aswell and went upstairs, he was, of course, followed by George.

...

In their room, George did not mention anything of the scene that had just happened upstairs. He focused on the products that they had to try. Fred asked George how the numbers were looking since the shop had reopened a bit more than two weeks ago.

Fred had to focus his mind on something that was not Ron. He had no idea what the git had said or done to Hermione but he was determined to find out before to go to bed. He was not going to live a month like that.

George's voice took Fred out of his thoughts.

« Good, people are coming back. Students are out of school and after what they had been through they need a good laugh, even Slytherins are coming but we need to start putting something new on our shelves otherwise people are going to get bored. » admitted George concerned

« Nothing is ready. » asked Fred confused

George shocked his head and explained to his twin that he had not been able to finish any of the products that they had been working on for months.

« With you at the hospital, I could not. » he said while his ears had turned red

Fred put his hands on his twin' shoulders.

« Don't worry Georgie, I would not have been able to work on those products either. They are our products, you and me together that how it works for us. But I have to agree with you, we need to launch some of the new products asap or we might loose clients and money. » sighed Fred.

...

Sat on their respective beds, they were talking about the skiving snackbox II. The box was ready but their initial idea was to launch it right before school, two weeks before the end of the holidays. Holidays had just started, pupils weren't thinking about skiving, they wanted to have fun.

Fred said that he could work on some products since he had nothing to do except going to rehab on the morning. Before George could answer Molly was calling them

« Boys, lunch is ready. Andromeda and Teddy have to leave early. Fred, George, hurry up. »

They agreed to finish that talk after lunch and arm in arm they went downstairs.

...

With George next to him, products on his head, Fred only needed one more thing to be totally happy. And that little something or better said someone was wearing a black jumper and cuddling her orange cat on the couch next to the chimney. Over the last days, he had a hint of how amazing it was to really have her in his life, he had never felt happier.

...

During lunch Molly had not stopped smiling, not even once, her family was finally reunited, all of them. She could not have been happier. Actually it was the same for everybody else except Hermione who was awfully quiet.

...

In a desperate attempt to have the chance to talk to her, Fred had taken the chair next to hers but then quickly Ron had pushed Percy away and he had taken the chair in front of Hermione and Fred.

Fred had been home only for a couple of hours and Hermione was already suffocating. She was already missing their time at the hospital. She knew that Ron would make things complicated but she had the feeling that it would be worst than what she had imagined. She was suffering, she did not know if she was going to have some alone time with Fred or if she was going to be able to spend time with him without Ron lurking on them.

She needed a plan ASAP, she needed help but how could she talk to Ginny or Harry without making them doubt. Harry had chocked on his piece of meat and looked at her in a very odd way when she had told him that she really did have feelings for Fred so asking Harry for help certainly was not a very smart move as for Ginny, the redhead easily drifted apart, imagining a second plan that was always out of linea and Hermione did not need that either.

She was not even hungry. She was not participating in any of the conversation either. She asked to leave the table before dessert. Every time that Fred was trying to talk to her, Ron was glaring at her, she had had enough.

« Hermione are you alright. » asked Molly and Andromeda at the same time

« Yes, I am just not really hungry. I am not feeling very well, I just need to lay down a bit» lied Hermione

As she was climbing the stairs, Ron made a nasty comment which made everybody frowned.

« Laying down well that's another kind of dessert, isn't it. Did not know you were this kind of women Mione. »

...

Hermione did not even bother to turn over. She dissappeared on the stairs letting Ron flabbergasted.

Fred who had got the meaning of his little brother comment was about to reply but George was pinching his leg under the table to stop him from entering into a fight.

« Something wrong Fred. Do you need to lay down aswell. » asked Ron happy to have gotten on Fred's nerves

« I am going to make you lay down stupid git. » replied Fred angrily. He had pushed his chair away. He was standing up, ready to attack his little brother, Arthur hit the table with his fists and that stopped Fred from moving.

« Boys enough, enough. Ron, Percy please change your seats and Fred and George please do the same. Fred sit down right now. Nobody is going to leave that table. Your mother had been cooking all morning, she had awoken at 6am to have everybody's favorite dessert ready and you are all going to do justice to your mother's plates. » reprimanded Arthur

Arthur was now looking at Ron.

« Ron, I know that you are hurt but maybe you should try to work on your flaws instead of trying make your brothers pay the price for something that they haven't done and then maybe, one day, Hermione will change her mind. » lectured Arthur severely

...

They finished to eat quietly. Andromeda, who had not really enjoy the Weasleys' show, left with Teddy right after lunch. She went upstairs to check on Hermione. She was really worried about the young witch.

Hermione had told her how hard it was for her at the Burrow with Ron but Andromeda had not thought that it could be that bad. She did not know the Weasleys really well and to be honest she had always seen Ron as a nice boy. A boy always in his brothers' shadows, a bit clumsy but certainly not the insensitive and unfair young man that she had seen today.

In a month, Hermione would be living with her, Harry and Teddy but who knew what could happen in a month.

...

Once Andromeda and Teddy were gone, Molly sent everybody outside so she could clean her kitchen and have a bit of rest after that.

Arthur and Percy went to Mr Weasley's Muggle paradise, Arthur wanted to show to his son few things and also talked to him.

...

Arthur had forgiven his son but not his actions. Arthur had suffered more than the rest of the family because he had to see his son at the Ministry everyday. A son that had been looking away or ignoring his own father for almost two years because he believed that he was above his family, better than them that really hurt and Arthur needed to get that weight out of his heart.

The others went to play Quidditch, Fred could not play yet of course. They asked him to referee but Fred refused, he had something else in his mind. He did not want anyone to get suspicious so he watched them play for a bit.

...

Fred passed next to the garage on his way to the house. He was relieved to do not be the one inside with his father. He was not sure how Percy was going to react after a sermon like this but had not Percy look for it, he certainly had...

Before to get into the house, he looked at the window to check where his mother was. She was asleep on the chair in the living room. Fred smiled and quietly opened the door of the kitchen.

Stealthily, he went upstairs. He really had to talk to Hermione. He knocked at the door before to open it as he had not gotten any answer.

Curiously, Hermione was not just reading. She was sat on her bed, earphones in her ears, looking at what looked like a Muggle magazine. She raised her gaze and smiled when she saw that it was Fred. She took the earphones off and closed her magazine.

« Can I come in. » he asked

She froze and automatically asked where the others were. Fred stepped into the room and told her to relax. He explained to her that his mother was asleep and that everybody else was out of the house. Unsure where to sit, if on Ginny's bed or next to Hermione, his eyes were like a tennis ball. He finally decided to sit next to Hermione.

...

He did not know how to start this conversation, he knew that the young witch was not mad at him but she was uncomfortable and when she was uncomfortable she could easily clench her claws into your skin without any valid reason. He had experienced that more than once, it was not pleasant.

« I hope that you aren't hiding from me. » he said smirking

She shocked her head and told him the truth. She told him what was really going on with Ron and for her surprised Fred shrugged.

« I've always known that my younger brother was mentally disturbed so please don't run away from me. Hermione, I can read between the lines. I knew that it was worst than what you and George were telling me. Taking the mickey out of Ron is my speciality and I am sorry because I am sure that if I had been nicer, he would not be acting that thoughtlessly. » he said honnestly

« Perhaps but I don't want you to fight because» she started

Fred interrupted her

« We always do, always will. » he said smiling

« Fred that's not funny. Also this is very uncomfortable for me. I don't want his crazy ideas to affect our friendship or»

He interrupted her again

« Ron's nonsense certainly won't. » he assured

He had been about to say that they did not need Ron for that, that his own feelings might be enough to mix up everything and to destroy their friendship but he had four long weeks to work on that.

He took her hands in his. Her hands were so cold compared to his that it was giving him goosebumps.

« Hermione, I don't want to loose the girl, my friend, who was coming at the hospital each day. I am not going to wait for Ron to come around to spend time with you and neither should you. It is not going to be easy but you can't let him control your life. I won't let him Hermione. I am ready to fight for our friendship, are you» he asked very serious

Hermione did not know what that meant. She thought for a second that Fred' speech had a double meaning. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

There was certainly no double meaning, she just wished that there was one and that was going to be a problem she knew it but she had wished for so long to have a chance to get to know him better that she was ready to jump in no matter what the consequences would be. Later, she would question her feelings for Fred, later. She had a month for that.

...

When she reopened her eyes, her gaze met Fred's. He was waiting for her answer.

« Yes Fred, I am but what about your mother and the others» she asked nervously

« My mother is a dictator if you let her control you, she is never going to stop as for the others, what about them. Hermione, we aren't doing anything wrong. We are just friends. It is like feeling guilty about what had happened. It is the same, you need to stop thinking about people's opinion. Live your life the way you want. » insisted Fred

« I am gonna try. Thanks Fred. And I wanted to say thanks for listening to me the other day, every day actually » she said gently

« Anything for you Hermione. Well, I should go back downstairs before Mum wakes up and start to look for me.»

He wanted to stay, to spend more time with her but alone on her bed with Molly downstairs, it was not a good idea. He had had enough for his first day.

...

He stood up and before to leave the room, he added

« You haven't done anything wrong. You deserve to be happy. » he had not find the strength yet to tell her that he knew everything, Hermione was smart, she would get that one.

Hermione frowned, this time she was sure that it had a double meaning and unfortunately for Fred, she had got the message but not its meaning. She was positive, Fred had seen her too just like Percy.

She felt a pain in her chest, she did not need Fred's pity. She did not want him to feel that he had a debt to pay. She wanted to be his friend, maybe more than that but not like this.

She made an effort to smile, put the earphones back on her ears and waited for Fred to be gone to burst into tears.

...

A bit of update. As I said it will take time for them to be together because both are thinking that the other just want friendship. And actually Ron is the one that I am using, with Molly, who are going to push them to confess their feelings for each others. In the next chapter Fred and Hermione are going to take a big step as they are going to talk about what she had done to save him and something else is going to happen and that is going to be thanks to Ron.

next chapter probably will be in two parts


	20. Chapter 18 part I

New chapter, this chapter will be divided into 3 chapters. When I wrote it, I just wrote everything on the app pages and then when I cc it here, I am like ouf too long. So yes this one in 3 chapters, I think...

BonesFan32 welcome :)

Emilie Berger welcome :)

KatterChaos1 welcome :)

and Nessamir welcome :)

We are now more than 70. Whaou, it makes me so happy :)))

Janes-Clory of thanks a lot for your comment :)

xx

...

Monday morning, monday 26th of May, the first day of four long weeks at the Burrow for Fred.

...

Tired, Fred and George were going downstairs for breakfast. They had gone to bed late, it was almost midnight but at least they had chosen which of their new products should hit the market first. They had decided to launch their new gums, instant light japanese powder, yes it was the opposite of the instant dark Peruvian powder. It was very useful in a dark room or at night or just to dazzle an adversary, and finally the verita flour or how to discover your friends' secrets while they are eating a cake. It had taken them months to get the right formula. They were very proud of that one.

...

It was not even 7am yet but everybody was already in the kitchen eating. Ron, Charlie and Harry had to join the Aurors at 7:50am, Arthur and Hermione had to be at the Ministry at 8am. Yes it was going to be Hermione's first day at the Ministry.

It was more like a summer job for her, not that she needed the money now but for her own mental health, she had to accept Arthur's offer otherwise she knew that Molly would have found a way to make her regret it. Besides, the job should be easy, she just had to name Muggle's objects and describe their functions and it was only on the morning.

This meant that she would have time to spend the afternoons with Fred, in peace as Ron, Harry and Charlie were not coming back before 5 or 6pm and Ginny was leaving the Harpies more or less at the same time.

She was still a bit sad because of what had come out of Fred's mouth on the previous day but after a good night of sleep she had decided to demonstrate him that she was worth his friendship and not just because she had saved his life.

...

Arthur and Hermione were ready to leave, Hermione had already stepped into the chimney when Molly claimed that Hermione could not go to the Ministry wearing a pair of blue jeans and a denim jacket. The young witch stepped out of the chimney looking at Arthur for help. Annoyed, the patriarch closed his eyes and shocked his head, then he told his wife that Hermione's outfit was perfectly fine to spend the morning into a dusty room.

« Mum seriously why do you always have to stick your nose into everyone's business. » complained Ginny while she was finishing her toast.

« I am just trying to help. A fine and young woman like Hermione, who for sure has a great career waiting for her at the Ministry, should make a good first impression. » explained a very preoccupied Molly

When they listened this one Fred and George rolled their eyes. Their mother and the Ministry...

« I believe that a dress and a cloak would be more appreciated. » she decreed while she was still looking at Hermione

« I don't Mrs Weasley. Moreover, I just have the dress that I wore at the wedding last year and I am certainly not going to wear that today. » rebuffed Hermione.

Fred was right Molly could be such a dictator.

...

Concerned Molly asked how come Hermione did not have anything more suitable than a pair of jeans, a grey sweater and her blue denim jacket.

« Well Mum, I think that during their hunt they did not really have time to worry about that. I can't really picture them going shopping to find the best outfit and matching colors to kick Voldy and his morons' arses. » started Fred

« Yeah! Seriously Mum imagine Harry, Ron and Hermione breaking into Hogwarts dressed up like for the Yule Ball, that would have been practical. Wait Ron's outfit could have been a good thing, would have scared some Death Eaters. » finished George chuckling.

Fred, Hermione and Ginny were laughing too as they were remembering the outfit that the poor Ron had to wear that day, not his finest moment that was for sure.

...

Molly gave up but made Hermione promised that she would go shopping with Ginny and Fleur to buy more appropriate clothes.

Arthur was tapping his watch and said.

« Molly, we are gonna be late, that's the worst thing to do when you want to do a good first impression. »

« What first impression, everybody knows Hermione. Those tossers who worked at the Ministry are the one who should make a good impression. » declared Fred

George, Ginny and Hermione giggled. Arthur sighed and _thanked_ Fred for his comment.

« Well now if you excuse us but we really have to join the rest of what was the word Fred, morons, oh no those are the Death Eaters, tossers, that's the one, right »

« Dad, you aren't one but most of them are. » replied Fred who really thought that the Ministry did not deserve someone like Hermione and even less when they just wanted her to identify stupid objects that were probably useless anyway.

« Well thanks for your lovely comments. Hermione come on hurry up. Molly, see you on the evening. Weasleys have a great day. »

And with that said, they left.

...

Fred came back from St Mungo around noon. His rehab was intense and he could swear that some of his muscles and bones must had disappeared during his coma. With years of Quidditch, he had a good fit body but he had lost a lot of strength during his coma and Healer in Chief Thomas's exercises were killing him.

When he arrived, only his mother was home. Disappointed, he sat at the table hoping that this alone time with his mother would not turn into something too horrible. He had hoped that Hermione would be home already, she was supposed to spend only her mornings at the Ministry.

...

Molly served him a plate of mashed potatoes, carrots and a piece turkey before to take a sit in front of him. Smiling, she asked him how rehab had been, how he was feeling...

...

She was trying to establish a deeper conversation but since their fight, after he had left school with George, Fred had become distant and Molly really wanted to change that.

Because of the fact that they were twins, Fred and George had never needed their mother as much as their siblings and as they were growing older it was becoming worst.

Sometimes Molly was feeling excluded from their lives, specially from Fred and it hurt a lot. She loved them so much and she was very proud of them, she had tried to show them, to tell them but still things were not the same anymore.

...

« I am very happy to have you for a month here. You know Fred, I would love to know more about your life, you and George. » she said with a wide grin.

Fred cleared his throat, he knew that he should try to make an effort, he should...

« There is not much to say Mum. We own a joke shop but you already know that. We work from Monday to Saturday, from 9 to 5 or 6, we come here on Sunday, there is not more to say. See there is only 7 days in a week and guess what there is no day left between Saturday and Sunday. » he said with a very Fred's tone that awoken Molly's anger.

« Fred please turn off that smart mouth of yours. I don't know anything about your lives and I would like that to change is that asking too much.»

« Why don't you just ask directly what you want to know so we are not going to spend hours beating around the bush. » replied Fred coolly

He was not against the idea but first he had to be sure that it was not one of his mother's trap to get information or that she was not arranging another blind date with one of her friends' daughters.

Offended and hurt, Molly ignored his last comment and focused on her plate. Fred was tough and he could be very cold but Molly had the impression that he was mad at her and she really could not picture anything that could have annoyed her son over the last few days. She was really hurt.

Fred rolled his eyes, sighed and asked his mother why the silence treatment. Since she was not replying, he inverted the roles. He was going to question his mother.

« I thought that you wanted to talk, then talk. Or is your little chit chat about your stupid party on Saturday. Or are you going to ask me again if I have heard from Sophie. »

Molly finally raised her gaze.

« No Fred, I already got that answer and I still cannot understand what is wrong with you, why did you let her go. She is a really fine witch from a very good family and she is so good looking, you two would have made cute babies. »

« Mum are you listening to yourself. » he was now as pissed as his mother.

« And nothing is wrong with me. I still feel really bad about everything that had happened with Sophie but Mum I am not in love with, I never was, I tried so hard but it did not work and I am sorry that I've hurt her but you don't choose who you fall for Mum and what did happen is none of your business » he added sharply

« Fred when you don't love a woman, you do not involve her into a sex friend relationship, that's the term right. I thought that we had taught you how to respect women. » blamed Molly

« I did not force her into anything. You have no idea about anything so don't judge me. » barked Fred. He wished that one day his mother would give up about the all Sophie story.

« Then explain me Fred, please I want to understand how on earth this idea of sex friend had come to your mind. »

Disconcerted, he looked into his mother's eyes and asked if she really wanted to know. She nodded. He pushed his plate and started his confession without knowing where this heart to heart would drive them.

«Fine, the day I met Sophie, I was heartbroken Mum. I went to the Leaky Cauldron to have a fire whiskey or ten. When she arrived I was already drunk, we are going to pass on what did happen after. I don't think that you need a painting for that after having 7 kids. »

« Fred. » reprimanded Molly who was not up for Fred's dark sense of humor

« Sorry Mum. So on the day after, I did not even remember her name. We talked a bit and then a couple of days later, she came to the shop, she wanted to know if I was alright. Apparently my drunk me told her all about my sorrows. Anyway, she became friend with Verity so I was seeing her often. We, you know, few times more and then one day she told me that she liked me and I told her that the only thing that I could offer to her was this kind of relationship. She accepted it mum, she was fine with it. » insisted Fred

« Until she was not because last year on Christmas' eve, she did not look like someone who was fine with it. » argued his mother

« We had stopped to see each other for a while and we had reconnected only after Bill and Fleur's wedding. She asked me to give her a chance, I tried but it did not work and you know how it ended, you were there» finished Fred who was praying for his mother to do not ask why he was heartbroken.

He was lucky because it seemed that Molly was only concerned about the Sophie's part.

« I am not sure that you've tried hard enough. » she said shocking her head as a sign of disapproval

« Well mum that's your opinion, not mine. I really tried to make it worked, at some points I even thought that it would but then on Christmas Eve actually, I heard something that really hurt me and then I realized that I would never loved Sophie because if I loved her, a comment about someone's else love life would not have affected me that much. Sophie knows me, she saw my face and she understood that's why she got so mad and left England»

« Is that someone the same someone because of whom you had to drown your sorrows into fire whiskey. » asked Molly who feared to ask a more direct question

Fred nodded.

« And may I know who is this mysterious girl» asked Molly.

She was a 100% sure that Fred was not going to give her any name but she still had four weeks to find out. She was surprised though because she had never thought that Fred could be a silent lover, loving a woman in silence and suffering because of that woman did not really sound like Fred. It sounded more like Percy, Ron or even George but certainly not like Fred.

He must had really loved the woman, thought Molly totally disconcerted

...

« If I tell you, you would not believe me so I am afraid that the confession will have to wait. » he said with a smile and just in that moment a green flame enlighted the chimney.

« Hermione darling, how was your first day. » asked Molly who was happy to see the young witch.

After her talk with Fred, she knew that the atmosphere would have been awkward. And Fred was relieved to do not have spited out Hermione's name.

...

Hermiome stepped into the room, she was covered with dust and her hair looked extremely messy and dirty. Fred was observing her wondering what on earth they had asked her to do at the ministry.

« Good, it was good. I am interrupting something. I can come back later. » said Hermione frowning when she noticed Fred's upset face

« No, no you aren't interrupting anything Hermione. You know my mother she was just rambling about old stuff. » teased Fred rolling his eyes

« Yes my Dear, Fred was just telling me now how tired he was from his rehab. A good two hours nap should help him to feel better. » countered Molly

Hermione briefly looked at Fred who was smirking. He said that indeed two hours of nap sounded like a plan.

...

She joined them at the table. They ate in silence and right after lunch Molly sent Fred to bed. Fred left the table with a smirk on his face.

The young witch did not know what had happened but one thing for sure the smirk on Fred's face meant that he was up to no good...

...

Hermione helped Molly to clean up the kitchen. They remained silent. Hermione was too afraid to talk and Molly was still digesting. The conversation that she had with Fred was hard to swallow.

Once the kitchen was clean, Hermione said that she needed to take a shower after spending four hours in the dirtiest place that she had ever been.

Clearly the Ministry and Mr Weasley did not care about any of those stuff. It was a room full of ancient objects from the 18th and 19th centuries that nobody was using anymore. She had not even been able to recognize all the artifacts which meant that she would have to find a book and to really work to complete her task. After her morning at the Ministry she was convinced that it had definitely been Molly's idea to get her out of the house and away from Fred.

She went to Ginny's room, took off her sweater, pants and the time turner. She took clean clothes and went to the bathroom thinking that most of the Weasleys were disturbed and that definitely the Pure Blood, the incestuous marriages must be the cause of all this madness.

...

When she stepped into the bathroom, she found Fred in it. He was brushing his teeth.

« I thought that you were in your room, sleeping. » she said confused and caught out.

She had not expected to see anybody and her arms were uncovered.

« Shush, close the door unless you want my mother to come here. » replied Fred in a low voice

« What are you doing here and why are you teeth pink. » she asked once the door was locked

Fred was looking at himself in the mirror and said that he was just testing a new product, the rainbow toothpaste. And just when he said that his teeth turned blue. Hermione giggled, only Fred and George could think about something like that. With a devilish smile on his face, he asked her if she wanted to try.

« No thanks. How long does the effect works. »

« That's the problem, we can't make it works for more than 15 min. It is not enough to put it on the market. We would love it to last at least an hour, we've added something yesterday so let's see. » he said while his teeth had turned red.

For his surprise, Hermione said that maybe she could help him. She did not make any comment about the fact that Healer in Chief Thomas had forbidden Fred to test any product either and that was even more surprising.

« I need to check with George, see we have some rules regarding our recipes. Not that we don't trust you but. » he started unsure of her reaction but she interrupted him before he could finish his sentence

« I understand but if George is fine with it, I would be happy to help. By the way your teeth are purple now. And hum, I would like to take a shower if you don't mind. »

« Why should I. The shower is empty go. » replied Fred who had been so taken aback by her proposition that he had stopped listening after the word help

« Fred. » she shouted

Fred hit his forehead with his right hand chuckled

« Oh you mean that you want me to leave. Sorry, I guess that after so many years sharing a bathroom with George, well it had made me forget about the fact that some people need privacy. » he said observing her and finally noticed that she was wearing a light blue tank top and one of old Ginny's white pajamas short only. She was skinnier than before but she was still bloody appealing, at least for him.

« Yes, I am sorry but I am one of those persons. » she said blushing while Fred was still examining her.

She knew him enough to know that his silence meant that he was in deep thoughts and that was making her very uncomfortable.

...

When he smirked, her heart missed several beats.

« Yes by the way, you are finally not wearing a big sweater and there is something that I've been asking myself for days. May I see your left arm. » the smirk was gone, he looked rather serious actually

She had feared Fred's thoughts but she had not thought about that. She had let her imagination drifted and she had to admit to herself that she had been waiting for a comment a bit wilder, flirtatious, basically a Fred Weasley's comment.

« Why. » she asked on the defensive

« Because we are at the end of May and sure we are in England but your big sweaters are a bit too much for the season and you are always scratching your left arm. »

« It is the whool of the sweaters, not very good quality I guess. » she lied

« Just like the quality of your lie then. » and with that said he took the clothes and the towel that she had in her arms and before she could do anything, he had grabbed her left arm.

He blinked a couple of times and remained silent for a while, staring at the word.

Hermione could have been naked, it would have been exactly the same thing...


	21. Chapter 18 part II

New chapter,

End of chapter 18, in two part in the end. And chapter 19 (with the revelation of the time turner) will also be in two parts

JayBat, no worries she won't :)

BlueberryFriday welcome :)

Xx

...

Hermione could have been naked, it would have been the same. She had never felt that exposed, defenseless before though she knew that Fred would never hurt her.

« Who did that to you. » he whispered still too shocked to speak normally

« Bellatrix. » she whispered too

He asked her if the mark on her neck was also Bellatrix's autograph, she nodded looking down. With his free hand Fred cupped her face and forced to look at him.

« Do you want to talk about it. » he asked gently

She shocked her head. She added that she was not ready yet. He did not insist, she had already told him so much over the last few days. He knew that it would take her time to totally open her heart to him. Patience was not his strong point but for Hermione he would be.

...

She asked Fred to keep that secret as only Harry, Ron and Fleur knew. Fleur had promised to do not say a word to Bill or any other member of the family. Not even Ginny, with whom she had been sharing a room for more than three weeks already, knew. Ginny had not seen the word yet, Hermione was doing a great job because Ginny had not even seen the time turner either.

The presence of the time turner would be even more difficult to justify so Hermione had turned herself into a professional last minute excuses maker. Excuses that everybody were buying but apparently fooling Fred was not that easy. She should have known, Dumbledore had warned her about it. Fred was the expert of the discipline while she was just a beginner.

...

Fred was looking at the red letter engraved into her soft skin. It was really red and it was not looking good at all. He said that he had something to heal it and to make the pain go away. Dubitative, she replied that she was already using dittany and that it still sored. Fred explained to her that the dittany was not strong enough. He reaffirmed that he had something that should work. She asked what could be better than dittany. He smirked and said that with George, they had created a healing balm with a really special ingredient, phoenix tears.

« And where did you find that, it is really rare and expensive, not that money seems to be a problem for you but how. » she started but this time he was the one who interrupted her

« That's a secret for another day Hermione. » he said winking at her

« Ok and why did you need something that strong, was it for George. » she asked concerned.

She had thought about phoenix tears of course but she could not even afford the smallest pot. Phoenix tears were extremely powerful and Hermione was really worried about what had forced the twins to buy a pot. The smallest pot, less than 10cl, costed more than 200 galleons.

He revealed that it had been for him actually. Hermione's heart had started to beat faster, one word was in her mind why. Fred released her arm, stepped back and took off his black t-shirt.

The action had made Hermione turned crimson, the vision of Fred's chest always had that effect on her.

...

The first time that she had seen him walking out of that same bathroom, bare chest, was four years ago. Back then, she had missed a stair and had fallen as she had not been able to take her eyes off him. At that time she already had a small crush on the tall redhead so the vision had naturally stirred her.

She could remember that she had swore when she had fallen but fortunately for her Fred was reading a letter, probably to or from Bagman, and he had not noticed anything. As far as she knew of course, she had never dared to ask him.

...

As soon as Fred had turned over to show her his back, she had turned white and forgotten about that silly memory.

Along his spinal column the word blood traitor had been vertically engraved. The letter was similar to the one that Hermione had on her arm. Though there was one big difference, compared to her arm, his back was healed. The word was not red and his skin looked normal.

Before she could touched his back, Fred had already turned over to face her again. She had been so shocked that she had not even completely realized that Fred was still bare chest, that they were locked in the bathroom and that Molly could come upstairs at any moment and that explaining her all this would be worst than a trip to hell.

« I had my own date with Bellatrix and her co-stars. » he confessed almost chuckling

« How » she asked horrified and disconcerted. How could that make him laugh.

« Well see the fact that we had decided to keep the shop open had it consequences. They broke into our stores many times to threaten us or to try to convince us to join them until one day they had stepped in with different intentions. George had already lost his ears so I volunteered, let's say that. »

Hermione had to sit on the edge of the old bathtub. Her throat was dry and her body cold as ice. Fred sat next to hers and took her hands in hands. She asked to continue even if the feeling of guilt might killed her.

« They wanted to know where you were, I think it was a couple of weeks after your show at the Ministry. The bitch had tried everything to make me speak until she realized that I really had no bloody idea of where you three were. I thought that she was going to kill me but then she took off my shirt, that was not sexy, I swear. »

Hermione was impressed, Fred was making fun of what had happened to him. She did not know if she should admire him or tell him that he was mad. She opted for admiration, Fred and George's more powerful strenght was to laugh even when everything was dark and this attitude had probably saved them often over the last two years.

« I passed out briefly after she finished her autograph and when I woke up, I was home. George told me that Malfoys, father and son took me home. Apparently Voldemort was in a good mood and had forbidden Bellatrix to kill me.» finished Fred

« I am sorry Fred. See that's exactly my point, this is all our fault. » Hermione affirmed one more time.

...

She had never felt that miserable before. He interlaced his fingers with hers and comforted her. He knew that it would affect her but if he had known that it would devastate her he would have not taken off his shirt and waited a bit more before to share his own experience with Bellatrix Lestrange.

« Hermione, they had been after us for months, it was meant to happen. The question about where you were had just been an excuse. For them, we were blood traitors for so many reasons. None of them is your fault. »

« I still feel miserable. » she replied whimpering

« Eh eh I thought that you wanted to take a shower. Hermione please don't cry. I am fine, we all have scars and we have to be proud of them. I will wait for you in my room. With our balm the pain is going to disappear, you will feel much better as for hiding it, you should not. » he reaffirmed

« Aren't you hiding it too. If I remember well you were pretty upset at the hospital when you did not know who had undressed you. » she retorted

« That's different. Our mother doesn't know and for now she doesn't have to. The last thing I need is my mother feeling guiltier. Our relationship is complicated since we've abandoned school, so it is better if she doesn't know but I am not ashamed of it and neither should you. Actually, I am a blood traitor and happy to be one. » he said grinning

« And I am proud to be a mudblood but I am not ready to handle people's questions just yet. » she confessed ashamed

« Well you better find a way to get comfortable with the idea very soon because summer is coming and I think that wearing a big jumper might be suspicious. They could think that you are pregnant, then Ron is going to think that I am the father and not that I would not appreciate the thought but euh I already had the sex talk with my father and I am not looking forward to have that talk again, plus my mother would kill me » teased Fred who was sure to get a strong reaction after that hypothesis.

Something like that had obviously not crossed her mind but Hermione had to admit that he was right. Would be funny to be accused of being pregnant when she never had sex and had not gone further than snogging, actually it would be the worst thing that could happen and Fred would have to pay a very high price for something that would not even be true. Hermione knew what Mrs and Mr Weasley thought about sex before marriage even though all their children had done it before to get married but a baby out of wedlock, for Molly, it was as worst as being related to Bellatrix Lestrange.

« Don't worry I won't let that happen. I just need a bit of time and if your balm is as wonderful as you said, it will help me to feel better. Healed, it won't be that visible. Now, I would really like to take a shower and by the way your teeth are still changing color so I think that you won't need my help rainbow smile man. » she said while she was pushing him out of the bathroom which was making Fred laughed

...

Hermione did join Fred after her shower. In less than an hour, the balm did stop the pain. Fred lent her the pot but told her that pot was named come back. She laughed.

« You are sleeping next door, literally, I don't think that it would be difficult for you to find it. Anyway, I do appreciate your faith in me. » she said half offended, half teasing

« I have faith in you Hermione but I don't want it to fall into the wrongs hands. » warned Fred

« I had no idea that your relationship with your mother was this complicated. » and with that said she picked up her courage, got closer not that it was a complicated as they were sat on Fred's single bed, cupped his neck and told him how sorry she was.

« Yeah, complicated that's the word but come on let's talk about something funnier. Which color are my teeth. » replied Fred who had not expected such a sweet gesture.

He had years of experiences when it came to hide his feelings for the young witch but on the other hand, they had never been that closed before, all the definition of close included in his thought, and that was troubling him.

...

Hermione rolled her eyes, let her hands rest on his chest and told Fred that his teeth had just returned to white. Delighted to have finally gotten the right formula, he took Hermione in his arms and hugged her tightly.

« George and I usually dance but it is too soon to let you see this. » he said to justify his gesture. Apparently when Hermione was that close, controlling himself was not that easy.

Hermione bursted into laughter and did not stop to laugh for a while. Fred's happiness was contagious and his devilment was fascinating Hermione. Fred was relieved as Hermione had not noticed anything.

...

That afternoon, she had finally understood why Fred and George were just two fools for some people. Even if they were hurt, even if they were scared or worried, they had decided to laugh about it. Laugh was their weapon, had always been and she had to admit that it was, indeed, very clever.

She had always been very touchy, she did not know how to laugh at herself and she was thinking that she should try to work on that too.

...

It was getting late, the others were about to arrive, Fred was trying to stop Hermione from leaving him but she told him that it was already a miracle that Molly had not come to check up on them. Everytime that she was trying to get up, he was pushing back her on his bed. He cracked a couple of jokes and finally gave up.

She left the room laughing. Fred really had the power to enlight her days.

...

next chapter saturday


	22. Chapter 19 part I

New chapter,

Shepherd330 welcome :)

first part of this chapter and I am still looking for a beta...

xx,

...

On the following day Fred and Hermione had managed to get out of the house while Molly was taking a nap. And of course before to leave, Hermione had asked if they were going to be in trouble which had made Fred laugh.

« You can stay here if you want but I haven't smell fresh air since the battle of Hogwarts and hum let's say that it did not really fit with my expectations of what fresh air means. » explained Fred with his habitual mischievous smirk

...

Hermione was following Fred wondering where they were going. They already had passed the Fawcetts' house and they were not taking the direction of the village. Hermione was pretty sure that they were taking the direction of the Diggorys' and the Lovegoods' houses but since Fred was not telling her where they were going, she was not really sure.

She did not want to be a killjoy but she had to remind Fred that they were no longer in a safe area and that Death Eaters were still on the run. So far the Aurors had just catch inoffensive Death Eaters but Dolohov, Rookwookd and Greyback were still on the run.

« Don't worry Hermione, nothing is going to happen to us. Trust me, I know what I am doing. » assured Fred.

Hermione trusted Fred but that was not enough to calm her nervousness. The worst part was that it seemed that Fred was enjoying the situation. She could see him smirking.

...

And it really was not just Hermione's impression, Fred was really having fun. Of course, he was a bit worried about the Death Eaters but nobody knew for how long those morons, as Fred liked to call them, would be on the run. The Aurors had no idea about where they could be and Fred was certainly not going to stay quiet until the Aurors had arrested this bunch of morons. Life was too short to live constantly with fears.

« What if something happens to us, we have just left a note to your mother saying that we are gonna be back before 6pm but. » started Hermione but she got interrupted by Fred.

« Oh Hermione, relax please. You know, you can go home if you want. I did not force you to join me. » he replied sharply. She was starting to get on his nerves with her what if. Fred hated those two words. The what if were worst than fate itself.

...

As already said Fred was not patient but for Hermione he was ready to work on that so he apologized and affirmed again that they were not in danger. He stopped walking, put his hands on her thin shoulders and asked her to calm down.

« I cannot ok, I have this big nod in my stomach. Walking like this without knowing where I am going, it is just like when I was on the run with Harry and Ron. You just don't know how it was, we had nowhere to go, we were just going. It was driving me crazy, everything was driving me crazy. We had no plan, sometimes I had the feeling that Death was lurking on us laughing.» she confessed

It was not Fred's fault, she still had a lot of issues to deal with. She firmly believed that Fred could help her, this was the reason why she had decided to follow him but she was scared, not for her, for him and the time turner hidden under her red jumper was a constant reminder of what had already happened. She did not want to relive Fred's death ever again.

...

Fred observed her for what seemed to be forever and then he told her that they were going to an old tree house that was really closed to the Diggorys' house, close to the river and with an amazing view on the village. He reckoned that Hermione had broken enough rules for the day. Besides, he could tell that she was really nervous. His wand was in his pocket while her wand was in her hand since they had left the house.

He added that he used to play there with, George, Cedrid and Percy in that tree house when they were kids. He was looking for a way to make her forget about the possible danger and for sure this memory would do the job. He sat on the grass of the field, field that was still far behind the river, from there only the top of the Burrow was still visible. Hermione imitated him and sat in front of him, wondering why he had suddenly decided to take a break.

...

He got distracted by a ladybird which made Hermione laughed. He took the ladybird, in the middle of his palm. The insect really looked minuscule in there. Hermione raised and eyebrow and asked why he wanted to go to see his old tree house. She did not want to stay in the middle of the field the all afternoon.

« Percy was supposed to keep an eye on us and in the end we were always dragging him down there. Cedrid was always nice with everybody, Percy included, so we were staying there for hours. We used to have so much fun »

« I cannot picture you playing with Cedrid. I did not even know that you used to be friend with him. » commented a surprised Hermione

« We used to be. Cedric was our best buddy. He started school a year before us, he had made friends there, we still did play together the summer before our first year though but it had been the last one. After that we had our own friends too and anyway Percy was too old to play with us and Ginny was still too young. We could not take her out of our land.» explained Fred with a grin on his face

« And why not taking Ron. » asked Hermione who wanted to find out why the relationship between the twins, mostly Fred and Ron was so complicated. Also Fred's memory was reminding her about what Fred had said about Hogwarts houses. If Cedric had been sent to Gryffindor, they probably would have been friends forever, that was really sad.

But for now she wanted to know more about Fred and Ron.

...

As far as she could remember, Ron was always complaining about the fact that Fred and George were never sharing anything with him. He had been so mad the day that the twins had given the Marauder's map to Harry. As for Fred and George, it looked like they were thinking of Ron as a mama's boy while their little sister was their fairy little princess. She knew Ginny, Ginny was not a fairy princess. Hermione loved her but Ginny could have a very dark sense of humor sometimes and she was tough as hell.

...

« I had forgotten to add that Cedrid was the Prince, the knight. With George, we were the guardians of the tower, the tower where the princess was captive. Cedric had to save the princess.» answered Fred

« Percy was the princess. » asked Hermione with her eyes wide opened. That was breaking news.

« Yes and he was even wearing a tiara. Percy is not that bad, you just need to get to know him. Ron would have never accepted to play the princess, he would have run home in tears and snitched everything to our mother. I haven't been there in years, I was 13 the last time. We had taken Lee and the girls there before our trip to Egypt. The view is amazing, you are going to love it.» finished Fred who believed that Hermione had understood why they had never asked Ron to come with them.

Indeed, she could not imagine Ron as a fairy princess...

...

Hermione was flattered, entering into Fred's world was something that she had really been looking forward, she still was. She did not really know why he had decided to take her there first though. She had told him about her childhood when she had told him about her parents, maybe he wanted to share something from his own childhood. As often, she did not dare to ask. Deep down she was scared of his answer like she always had.

...

After another 10 minutes of walk, they finally reached the border of the river. They were in what looked like an abandon orchard with the grove against the backdrop. They walked into the grove that was separated the river from the village.

Rapidly, Hermione spotted the tree house even if it was really well hidden but at the same time the tree was bigger and higher than the rest of the trees. It was indeed quite close from the Diggorys' house, she could see their house from there. She felt sick, Cedrid had been the first one, life was so unfair, Cedrid was such a sweetheart.

...

Fred's hysterical laugh took her out of her thought. She could not see him on the ground, she looked up, there he was at the top of the old ladder laughing like never before. The door of the tree house was opened and Fred was looking inside. He must had seen something really comical to laugh that much.

Hermione wanted to see what it was too because what could be so laughable inside of an old tree house. The tree house was really high, she looked at the ladder and started to encourage herself.

You can do it, Fred is there, he won't let you fall, she told herself before to start climbing

...

Once she was almost on the last rung, she grabbed Fred's t-shirt to draw his attention. He looked at her still giggling.

« What so funny. » she asked perplexed. There were noises coming from the tree house, like if people were running inside

« Get up and see. » he said

He knew that she was afraid of height so he helped her to climb the last rungs and held her next to him so she could look inside. His right arm was firmly wrapped around her waist.

After just one peek, she closed her eyes and wished that she had not seen anything. She was also thinking about what Fred might had seen as he had been up there for more than five minutes already. Thanks god, Fred was holding her or she might had fallen.

...

Luna and Neville were inside of the tree house. Luna was sat on an old white and blue blanket, buttoning her liberty shirt while Neville still bare chest, shirt in his left hand and with his pants unbuttoned, was desperately looking for his socks. He was red as a tomato and not just his face, his neck too. Fred in between two bursts of laughter was teasing the young wizard. Poor Neville, thought Hermione.

« Aie aie Neville, I thought that you were into botany, not sowing. Pr Longbottom, I am afraid that relationship with students are forbidden and in a tree house, Merlin's beard think about what McGonagall would say or better said your grandmother. » said Fred falsely outraged

« Fred, come on let's go. We should leave them alone, don't you think» said Hermione who was trying to get out of Fred's arms. She had seen too much, she did not need to see that

Fred shocked his head, he was enjoying the show way too much to leave. Hermione grabbed his purple t-shirt and forced him to move.

« Neville, Luna, I am really sorry, we had no idea. We are leaving » she said almost as red as Neville

« Yes we had no idea. Before we go, one question, Neville have you seen the nargles yet. » asked Fred chuckling

« Fred. » shouted Hermione who had understood what he really meant and so had Neville who was looking at his bare feet.

« Not yet no. They are really hard to find and see you know. You have to be really concentrated but Neville will see them soon, I am sure. » answered Luna who of course had to say something as always.

Hermione rolled her eyes, she had learnt to appareciate Luna and even to enjoy her company but her comments coming out of nowhere were still driving her nuts. For Hermione, Luna was really living in teddy-bear-land or perhaps Luna was just more sarcastic than everybody on this planet.

Teddy-bear-land for sure, nobody who knew what sarcam and irony were could wear a bright yellow skirt, a liberty shirt and pink socks with daisies on them and smile as if nothing had happened just after being caught by one of the Weasley's twins alias the devil's cousins...

« Heard that Ne. » started Fred

Hermione gave him a jab in the ribs

« Aie, Hermione that hurts. » complained Fred

« Fred. Let's go home. Neville, Luna have a nice afternoon. See you on Saturday. »

Fred sighed and gave up.

« Alright, see you on Saturday until then good luck finding the nargles Neville. »

Before he could add anything else, Hermione had silenced him with her left hand. He raised his hands in the air as a sign of peace and went down in silence, well he was stifling his giggles.

...

On their way back home Fred had not been able to stop laughing. He could not believe it. He knew that Neville and Luna had started to date right after the battle. Everybody had told him. But only a bit more than 3 weeks had passed since then and Fred would have never imagine that those two would have already reached that point.

Fred would have bet so many galleons on Neville getting married and still being a virgin. However, it was true that the git did ask his little sister out for the Yule Ball so maybe Neville was not as clumsy as people were thinking.

But Neville playing doctor with Loony Lovegood that was just too good to be true. He could not wait to see George and tell him what he had seen and he laughed again imagining George's face.

...

Hermione was observing Fred. She was confused, she could not get what was so funny. She was feeling almost as embarrassed as Neville. If it had been her who had been caught, she would have been so ashamed.

...

For her ex roomates Lavender and Parvati, she was prudish and priggish, she was not. She was just terribly inexperienced, her two best friends were guys who were almost as inexperienced as she was. Ron did have sex with Lavender a couple of times but before Lavender, Ron had never even hold a girl's hand so he was still in the same pot as Harry and her and anyway Hermione did not want to talk about that with Ron, never.

Ginny was way too experienced so Hermione did not really have anyone to talk to about sex and the subject was kind of making her uncomfortable anyway because she had no knowledge and for Hermione knowledge meant power. And she certainly was not going to buy a book on this subject.

She was eighteen and she obviously had a lot of questions, she did not even have her mother around to talk about it. She had few talks with her mother but that was two years ago besides her mother was talking and she was just listening.

Back then, she was in love with Fred and as her mother knew about her feelings for the redhead, Hermione believed that if she asked questions, her mother would think that she was ready and she did not want her mother to ramble about this or to ask her constantly if she was still a virgin. Her mother was an opened woman but like all mothers, she was more opened with others then her own daughter...

...

Hermione really missed her mother. There was Andromeda of course but Hermione did not want Andromeda to question her. She did not know Andromeda enough yet to randomly initiate a conversation about this particular subject. As for Molly that was a big no way.

...

Fred clicked his fingers under her nose. She had asked him a question and she was not even listening to him.

« Bloody Hell Hermione, I thought that you had seen the nargles. » teased Fred

She rolled her eyes

« What were you thinking about anyway, you were gone. I have tried good wildflowers in my life believe me and I think that I've never been gone that far. » he assured amused

She looked away, totally ignoring his comment about the wildflowers. When she was a Prefect, she had caught them, with Lee, smoking more than once during her rounds. Who could think about all those products sober, anyway...

She mumbled that she had asked a question first. She was not going to tell him what she was thinking, absolutely not, that was way too dangerous.

« But you weren't listening. Fine, fine don't look at me like that. So you asked what is funny, well everything. I mean I walked on an almost naked Neville. Luna only had her shirt off but Neville was only wearing yellow underwear and a sock, who would have thought that the two Hogwarts outcasts would be enjoying carnal pleasure so quickly. I still have the image of Neville turning into a canary stuck in my head and now I am going to have Neville's canary in mind, that's horrible » mocked Fred

« You know they did help us, they are my friends. » admonished Hermione

« Eh eh don't get mad at me. I like them too, I am just surprised. I mean come on Hermione be honest and don't tell me that you aren't thinking exactly like me. »

It was a tricky one and she did not know what to say.

« Luna might be your friend now but as far as I could remember she was not exactly your bosom buddy. I used to look at you, a lot, and on the morning when Luna was stepping into the Great Hall , you were always looking at her with a face of disgust. You did not know her, you had prejudices, just like people used to think of you as Hogwarts' bookworm. So don't blame me for something that you did too.» he said calmly

She replied that she was not proud of her past behaviors and added that nobody should judge a book by its cover. She was upset also because of the bookworm's comment. Fortunately Fred was perspicace and told her to forget about that.

« Now don't tell me that you had expected something like that from those two. »

He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. She giggled and admitted that she was as astounded as he was. Neville and Luna together ok but Neville and Luna doing it, it had never crossed her mind. She added that she did not even know that Neville knew how to snog.

« Believe me, he knows how to snog and Loony Lovegood was enjoying it. Buah, I think that I will have to take that memory out of my mind, it might give me nightmares and why on earth did they have to go to our tree house. Isn't Mr Lovegood mad as hell, I am sure that if Neville shagged Luna on the table, he would not even noticed. I need to tell George. I am afraid that we will have to burn that tree house now.»

« You are joking, aren't you. » asked Hermione who did not know if he was serious or not. With Fred, it was always hard to say.

He did not reply. He just winked at her.

...

The next day they met Neville and Luna again, at the local shop of the village this time.

Molly had sent them to the local groceries store. They had been both surprised when Molly had pronounced the word together, specially after the good telling off that they had gotten when they had come back after their little trip to the tree house the day before.

But on the other hand, it was understandable. It was dangerous out there and Molly did not want to experience what loosing one of her children really meant. Moreover, she had to meet Andromeda and Kingsley, at Grimmauld Place, to send an owl to all members of the Order which meant that Hermione and Fred would be alone the entire afternoon, so she had to make sure to keep them busy before that Fred could think of another great idea.

Dolohov, Greyback, Rookwood and Lestrange had finally been spotted in Plymouth the day before but they were gone before Harry, Charlie and Audrey arrived there. The fact that Hermione and Fred had been, unprotected, that same afternoon had made boiled Molly's blood.

A patronus from her husband telling her to stay in the house had awoken her from her nap. Worried she had looked for Fred and Hermione and when she had finally seen the note, she had promised herself to make them regret their escapade and she had.

...

At the local store, when Neville had met Fred and Hermione, he had turned white and he had made fall several tins of sardines and tuna.

« Neville enjoying Muggles' food and alcohol too apparently. Is the Vodka helping you to chase the nargles. » asked Fred with his devilish smile

« Maybe. » answered Neville oddly while he was trying to hide the bottle behind his back.

Luna and her habitual ingenuous smile appeared behind Neville in that moment. She greeted Fred and Hermione with a hug that neither Hermione or Fred had anticipated. Fred made his best to do not touch Luna's dirty hair. He was about to suggest her the shampoo area but what had come out of Luna's mouth had totally silenced him. Even his smirk had vanished.

« You know Fred, if you are so interested in nargles, I can teach you how to see them or find them. » she said enthusistically

...

part II will be on Tuesday. From now on there will be only 2 chapters per week.

And I am sorry for those who love Luna and Neville, I love them too but they are a bit weird and remember this is not from Harry POV but from Hermione and Fred. Hermione is a bit close-minded, what she can't see or read in books does not exist as for Fred well after Ron, Neville is one of the twins fav victims and Neville is kind of patsy, the laughingstock... and I wanted to keep that for my story

...

It is a 50/60 chapters story so we are more or less at 40% of its progression.

Once the time turner part will be solved which is the next storyline, the first one was Hermione after the battle/Fred in coma, the second one is that new friendship and the third storyline is going to be the time turner, the death eaters and Fred and Hermione getting together


	23. Chapter 19 part II

New chapter, well the end of the chapter 19

Nikolina Bak Weizer welcome :)

Gabriele Kazlauskaite welcome :)

and finally Noemi Potter welcome :)

almost 80 now :)))

Let me know your thoughts on this chapter please :)

xx

...

« That won't be necessary Luna but thanks for the offer, I guess. I am still terribly weak and I really need some rest. » lied Fred

The last thing that Fred wanted was to spend time with Luna Lovegood. A bit like Hermione, he was pretty sure that Luna must had fallen from Teddy-bear-land, just like her father must be coming from freakylandia.

Hermione was biting her lips to do not laugh. The biter had been bitten and Fred's face was hilarious. Fred told the couple that they really had to go home.

« You know with the morons few miles away from here, my mother doesn't want us stay away from the house. It was nice to see you again, and all dressed up. See you on Saturday guys. Have fun. » he said

« Yes see you on Saturday and say hi to everybody please. » replied Neville who had also been taken aback by his girlfriend's words.

Fred promised, then he took Hermione's hand and led her to the checkout. Seeing Fred ill at ease was a first for Hermione and it was so amusing.

...

Once they were back at the Burrow, Hermione made some tea and she sat on the couch next to Fred. She looked at him and giggled. Fred raised an eyebrow and asked what was so funny.

« You should have seen your face when Luna offered you to help you with the nargles. I don't think that you were talking about the same nargles, I hope not that would be gross but still that was really funny. » admitted Hermione

Fred shocked his head and chuckled. He was not silenced often...

« I really hope that we were not talking about the same nargles. She is all Neville, even drunk I would not touch her. Don't laugh but she is kind of scary. She looks like she is high all the time. » said Fred seriously

« Well her father does make a really weird tea maybe that's why but I think that they look cute together, Luna and Neville not Luna and her father » smiled Hermione who was really happy for Neville.

Neville was a bit clumsy and definitely not the cleverest guy on earth but he was nice, sweet, sensitive, loyal and so in love with Luna. Hermione wished that one day someone would love her that much and look at her the way Neville was looking at Luna.

...

Fred was babbling about the new lovers and without knowing why Hermione suddenly felt anger invading her body. Fred just like his siblings could easily let escape nasty comments, Hermione was used to it and most of the time it was just making her laugh but not that day.

She repeated that they looked good together, Fred smirked and said

« Oh yeah they do, those two together, absolutely not surprising just like the fact that Neville had a bottle of vodka in his hands. I would pay to see them drunk, the Neviluna' show. If he needs to drink to handle his nerves then Loony Lovegood is not the witch for him. But if everything is as dirty as her hair, I would have bought something stronger.»

« Fred don't be so mean. » replied Hermione angrily. Listening to him was painful, he might be smirking but he was not joking, he meant what he had just said.

« I am not mean, I am just realistic. Hermione, Neville did kill the snake and did prove that he is a true Gryffindor but Neville is still Neville. For God's sake Hermione, Neville is afraid of his own shadow while Luna probably has conversation with hers. » he answered confused.

He did not like Hermione's face, she was upset and he could not understand why. Very serious Hermione looked into his hazel eyes and asked if she could ask him a question.

« Are you going to hit me, you are making the right face for it. » said Fred worriedly. She could hit him if she wanted but he had to know why first so he told her to go on with her question.

« Why are you so mean all the time. I mean your jokes and products make laugh people that's a fact otherwise you would not be able to afford Phoenix tears but why do you always need to make fun of people. » she said with tears in her eyes

Totally disconcerted Fred asked her what was wrong but instead of answering she said that at least he had the decency to make fun of everybody not just people who were weaker than him. She said that it was the difference between him and Malfoy.

« Hold on, did you just compare me to Malfoy. Hermione what is bothering you. I am not mean, you are the one who doesn't know how to make the difference between an harmless joke and an harmful one. » replied Fred who was as angry as Hermione except that his anger was justified not like Hermione's anger which was just based on old insecurities.

« Because I never know when you are joking or not. My parents always says that in every joke there is a part of truth. Fred, you are not always joking, you do remember Montague right. » She was glaring at him

« I still don't get your point and the git deserved that one. » argued Fred who was making a big effort to control his bad temper and his voice's tone. If he yelled, he knew that she would leave without telling him what was wrong and he was not his little brother, he was not going to play this game.

« I disagree. Fred, one of the reasons why I never told you anything about my feelings was because I was scared of your reaction. Ginny once told me that you are always joking except when you aren't, it did not help me, it just made more confused. I could handle Malfoy and his band, I could handle your brother and his idiocies, Lavender, Parvati but I would have never been able to deal with you. I was scared of you finding out that I liked you because I did not want you to humiliate me in front of the entire school. » she explained while the tears were falling on her cheeks

Fred tried to take her hands but she pushed him away.

« I would have never made fun of you. I never did and I never will. And Ginny is right and people know how George and I are. Hermione, how could you think for a minute that I could first rejected you and second humiliated you. I like a good prank that's true but I do not put people down. » he affirmed.

He was totally disconcerted by the road that what seemed to be a simple conversation had taken. He tried to take her hands again, Hermione stood up, she needed air but first she had to add one last thing.

« I don't think that you would like to be pranked by yourself. You should think about this you know. I am not talking about the shop, I am talking about your attitude in general. You had made Neville cried more than once and until you won't realize that jokes must have a limit, you won't be far from Malfoy. After all, the Slytherins were laughing their arses off when he was making fun of someone just like the all school was laughing when you were making fun of someone but every time there was a person humiliated, always. » she said in tears

...

Feeling stupid Hermione said that she had not seen her cat yet. She had let her old fears submerged her. When she had heard him talking about Neville and Luna, her mind had started to overthink. For a moment, she had the feeling to be her old 16 years old self again, the one who used to yell at Fred to hide her feelings.

She was so ashamed of her behavior that she could not even look at him. To apologize was an option but then Fred would ask her why and she did not know how to justify her excess of madness. She did not want him to think that she was not over him because she was, was not she.

She shocked her head, she was just confused. Indeed, sometimes she did not know if she was her old self dreaming or if this was reality.

« If you excuse me, I am going to look for him. »

Fred did not even try to stop her, he was too angry for that.

...

Once she was out of sight, Fred violently pushed the small table away. He took his wand out of his pocket to repair the teapot that had fallen on the floor. Hermione had told him several times already that she had been scared of his reactions but she had never asked him why he had never told her anything about his feelings before.

She would be surprised to know that he had been scared of her reaction just like she had been scared of his. Fred did believe that nobody would take him seriously, that everybody would have told him that he was not good enough for Hermione Granger and that he never would be. And maybe they were right and that was killing him inside.

What was he supposed to do now, try to change for what a woman who no longer had feelings for him and who thought that he was mean, that was such a ridiculous idea but if it meant wining the key to her heart, he was ready to try. James Potter had changed for Lily Evans, had not he, then he Fred Weasley could make an effort too.

He was not hurt by her words, he was hurt because this was what she was thinking about him. He left the house in a hurry, he had to talk to her.

...

Fred ran after Hermione. He was not going to be like his baby brother. He did not want to have a relationship, friendship whatever it was based on fights.

Hermione was sat on the bench in the orchard, Crookshanks on her lap. Fred sat next to her

« I thought that you were mad at me. » she murmured

« I am not, are you. » he asked whispering

She looked into his eyes and shocked her head. He told her that he knew that he was not perfect. He added that he had never pretended to be and that there was a lot of things that she did not know about him like the fact that he had been scared of her reaction too. He told her how he did believe that he was not good enough for her and his fears to be rejected. He also said that he wanted to have her in his life but that as long as she would be seeing him as a mean prankster it would not be possible to have a deep and real friendship.

« I did not mean to offend you. Fred, I don't know how to explain this to you but sometimes I don't know if this is 1996 or 1998. With you around, I am having flashbacks and my mind get stuck in 1996. Over the last two years, those last days excluded, I have barely seen you. I have seen you what 5 times approx and we are getting to know each others better now and I am really enjoying the time that I am spending with you but somehow in my head, I am getting to know better the Fred that I have left behind at the end of 1996's summer. » she explained praying that Fred would understand her

« Hermione, I am no longer the Fred of 1996. I have changed, we both have. The last two years had been the hardest years of my life. »

« For me too. » she said relieved as at least Fred seemed to be no longer angry

« I got your point, this is a bit confusing for me too but this is 1998 not 1996 and unless you have a way to go back on time, I think that we should let 1996 where it belongs. » affirmed Fred who really believed that their only chance to build something real was precisely to forget about what their old selfs used to think and want, which was to be together.

Hermione asked where that was and Fred replied with a smile that 1996 belonged in 1996, two years ago, in their past.

...

Maybe they would fall in love again but first they had to get to know the person that they had become and see what would happen from there. It was not gonna be easy but that was the right thing to do. To get there Fred knew that they would have to be totally honest with each other's which meant that he had to find a way to tell Hermione that he knew or find a way to make her confess what she had done to save him and why.

Fred was scared of what would happen after, Hermione was so confused. At the hospital when she had told him that she did not know who she was anymore or who she wanted to be, he had not thought that her problem was so deep but it really was and Fred was not going to jump back on time, they were not going to live a what if.

...

At that point he did not even know if Hermione wanted to be friend with him or just spend time with the guy that she used to like and that was the big difference between them because unlike her, Fred had not locked Hermione in a foreign part of his mind for the last two years, he had spent those damn two years trying to get her out of his mind.

...

For Fred, it all made sense as Hermione had told him that she was in love with him when he was in coma and he had no memory of this, so he still believed that she just had a crush on him and that he was the only one who was truly in love.

...

This conversation had reinforced Hermione's opinion. Fred knew about what she had done to save him and he was just trying to pay his debt. Why would Fred Weasley do so much if it was not because he had the feeling that he owed her something.

Bring the subject was easy, she just had to show him the time turner that was around her neck but she was still too afraid of his questions.

He might be doing all this because he felt that he had to but not her. Her biggest fears were a reality, she was falling for him all over again.

...

At night, Fred told everything to George. And of course George begged Fred to keep his distance.

« Fred, she is going to break your heart, again. You know, I am telling you again, maybe Mum is right and we should meet new people. »

« Maybe. » answered Fred with a weak smile

...

Fred did not sleep well that night and when he awoken on the next morning he told his mother to do not wait for him for lunch. He said that he was missing the kids that he had met at the hospital and that he wanted to spend time with them.

He had not looked directly at Hermione, he did not need to, she had understood that Fred needed space. She left with Arthur with a big nod in her stomach, she had ruined everything. But what was she supposed to do, tell Fred that she had saved his life because she could not picture her life without him, that she had been so in love with him that she had even written his name on her V card, that she was probably still in love with him and that she did not want him to reject her when Fred had almost begged her to forget about 1996.

Unlike Fred, she wanted to go back to 1996. She wanted to get everything that she had wanted at that time and then from there go on with her life. A life that she had dreamed about for so long, the life that she wanted to have, a life that would never be hers because except her feelings for the tall redhead everything had changed, everything.

...

She did not want to go home after her morning at the Ministry so she went to Grimmauld Place. She had been surprised to find Kingsley there, he was having lunch with Andromeda, they were talking about Order's stuff. Hermione did not know that Andromeda was that involved in the Order or that she was friend with Kingsley but that was none of her business.

...

Once Kingsley was gone, Hermione bursted into tears and told everything, includind the part about the time turner, to Andromeda. Andromeda took the young witch in her arms and comforted her. She was fondling Hermione's hair and whispering comforting words. She was not mad at Hermione, if she had the opportunity to save her husband and daughter, she would do it.

« Oh Honey, please stop crying. »

« But I just don't know what to do, and why aren't you mad at me. » asked a perplexed Hermione

« Hermione, I told you already when Nymphadora left that day, I knew that she would not come back. You aren't egoist because you had saved just one life, you are in love with Fred, your head is in deny but your heart is not though you better be careful and find a way to get rid of that time turner. If someone finds out, it would be horrible however you have to tell Fred, he deserves to know everything» insisted Andromeda

« I know but. »

« Hermione don't get me wrong but I think that you are afraid to get hurt. Honey, love does hurt but love is worth the pain. Please don't push love away or you are going to regret it one day. Being in love is scary but it is the best feeling in the world. Honey, you can't eternally hide yourself behind a book. » stated Andromeda while she was refilling their cup of teas.

« I am not hiding behind my books. » mumbled Hermione

« Oh yes you are, you are hiding behind knowledge but love is not something that a book or a professor can teach you. You might not be ready to accept your feelings but the sooner you accept them the sooner you can tell Fred how you feel. Besides Fred is right, this is 1998, not 1996. 1996 is over but not your journey, it seems that you believe that you had to be with Fred from 1996, but it did not happen, never will however it can happen now if you tell him everything » insisted Andromeda

« I know but what if he doesn't believe me, what if he doesn't want me. » whispered Hermione

« I am sure that he still loves you too but you are right he might reject you or you might become Mrs Frederik Weasley but to know what will happen you first need to be honest. Because of stupid fears you have already lost an opportunity, the both of you. This one might be your last and one of you two needs to do the first move and unlike in fairytales, in reality we, women, have to make the first move most of the time. » assured Andromeda with a smile

« I will think about it. » smiled Hermione

« And I will be here to remind you about it. Now you should go home, it is getting late and I bet that nobody knows where you are. » said Andromeda. She had raised her eyebrows and looking at Hermione just like her mother used to when she knew that Hermione had done something wrong.

The young witch hugged and thanked Andromeda, kissed Teddy and left the place that was slowly was starting to feel like home.

...

Dinner was ready, Hermione, Ginny and Fleur were helping Molly to lay the table. Once they were done with it, Molly had sent Hermione to look for Fred. Aside from Ron and his comments each day during dinner, Molly was still convinced that Fred would never have any interest on Hermione and Hermione seemed to have got her message so Molly was fine with those two being friends.

...

Hermione had found Fred easily. He was sat on the bench outside, he was looking at the clear sky.

He seemed lost in deep thoughts. She did not want to bother him in his reflections specially after what had happened between them the day before but Molly had ordered her to get him for dinner.

She tiptoed towards the bench and silently she sat next to him. He greeted her with a smile and she automatically smiled back.

In silence, she observed him for a couple of minutes, she was so glad to have saved his life. She knew that no matter what the consequences would be, she would never regret saving his life.

...

She did not want to bother him but she did not want Molly to send any other Weasley to look for them like Ron for example.

« Fred. » she whispered

He turned his head and his gaze found her brown eyes.

« Yes » he said smiling

She blushed without knowing why. But was not she always blushing when he was around anyway...

...

She told him that Molly had sent her to tell him that dinner was about to be served.

« I am coming, just two more minutes please. » he replied calmly.

His eyes looking into hers, he knew what to do next. He had been thinking about it all day.

Hermione nodded and smiled at him. She stood up, ready to leave to give him another minute of reflection, alone, but he had grabbed her hands before she could have made a step ahead. He did not hesitate and said that he had seen her. Hermione's face faded.

« You saw me, where. » she asked falsely surprised just like if she had no idea what he what talking about...

« Come on Hermione. » he giggled before to become serious

« I owe you my life and don't even try to pretend that I hallucinated, I saw you, I am positive. You saved my life, I just need to know and why. » He affirmed


	24. Chapter 20

New chapter

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...

« I owe you my life and don't even try to pretend that I hallucinated, I saw you, I am positive. You saved my life, I just need to know and why. » affirmed Fred

« How did you figure out. » mumbled Hermione who had turned white

After their disagreement on the day before, Hermione would have never imagined that Fred would spit the truth out first. She had believed that he would go on with his teasing and his double meaning's sentences until she would confess. Obviously, she was wrong and once more she had been caught off guard.

...

Fred noticed her nervousness. He stroked her wrists with his thumbs and raised his gaze to meet hers. He could no longer play that game. A day away from Hermione had given him time to think and he knew that they had to talk about what she had done.

« Since I awoken, I am having flashbacks of that moment. I dream about it every night. I did not tell you before because I first thought that my mind was playing a trick on me but I cannot chase those images away. I know that I did not hallucinate. I know that you saved me even if I still don't understand how you had managed to be at two places at one. Because this thing around your neck that you keep hidden under your sweaters can't be McGonagall's time turner, right» he said raising an eyebrow

Hermione turned from white to crimson. She did not bother to ask how come he knew about the time turner. With George, they had found the Marauder's map and figured how to open it when they were 11 years old, so nothing coming from the twins would ever surprise her.

...

She took a deep breath, to put this weight out of her heart was not going to be easy. She had a lot of bad memories however that one was definitely her worst memory. She had to relive that moment to explain her gesture so she closed her eyes and forced her brain to look for those painful images.

...

There she was again, 2nd of May 1998. She told Fred about the chamber of secrets, about the room of requirement, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, the lost diadem...

«After the explosion, Harry helped me to get up. We were looking for you and your brothers. We were in a hurry, we had to end this. We finally knew what to do so we had to take Ron and leave but then we saw Percy and Ron. They were on top of someone, crying. You were that someone. You were lying on the groud with a smile on your lips but with no breath coming out of your mouth. I could not move, I was frozen. » she said still looking into Fred's eyes.

It was gonna be hard, she knew it but Fred was alive. It was just a bad memory, not reality, she had to keep that in mind.

« You could not be dead, not you. I was trying to understand how this had happened, thinking about a spell or anything that could bring you back but my brain refused to work. In that moment, Harry, Ron and Percy suddenly decided that they had to kill Death Eaters. They wanted revenge and I guess that the rational part of my brain was still working because I stopped them and told them that we had to go on, that we had to end this. I told them that we had to defeat Voldemort, that it would be the real revenge so we left. I did not touch you or got really close, I could not. »

Her voice was still clear but tears had just started to fall on her cheeks. She had to continue before sobs would make her words incomprehensible so she took another deep breath and told Fred what did happen next.

« When Harry went to the Forbidden Forest, there had been a moment when we had nothing to do, we just had to wait. I could not stop thinking about you. With Ron, we went to see your family, they were destroyed. I saw you, really saw you this time, your eyes were closed and I felt my heart exploded into millions of pieces. Too many lives depend on yours, I could not let you go so I ran to the only place where I knew that I could be helpful, where I knew that I could do something instead of just waiting for Harry to come back, either dead or alive. I was not even sure that Professor McGonagall still had it but I had to try. I found it and used it to save you.» she finished in a quavering voice.

Her faced was bathed in tears

...

Fred had not said a word yet. It had been hard for him to listen to her because his mind had been so focused on Hermione saving his life that he had not really thought before about the fact that for a moment somewhere, that day, on the 2nd of May 1998, he really did die.

He dried her tears and asked her to give him details and she, after taking another long deep breath, explained him everything about her trip. She told him that she went back on time but as she did not really know at what time it had happened, she landed only few minutes before the explosion.

She added that she had been lucky because she really could have been seen. Actually, she had, Fred and Percy had seen her. She just hoped that Harry and Ron had not seen her... Ron would have already confronted her but Harry, she remained unsure about that part...

...

Done with the how, she was now leading to the spell that she had used and that was really the tricky part. She was no longer crying, she was breathing heavily, from there everything could go wrong with Fred but she could not lie, she had to be honest with him.

« I did not even know if it was going to work but I had to try. During my sixth year, I worked on old spells for one of my ancient runes expose. I had asked the permission to take a couple of books from the restricted section. Of course, I did take more than a couple of books. In one of them, I did find a full chapter about ancient shield spells that had been used for centuries during wars. Most of those spells are illegal nowadays. Anyway, there was one in particular that did catch my attention. I guess because I had found it terribly romantic. » she said blushing

Fred frowned and asked more about the spell. The word romantic had surprised him and Hermione's pink cheeks had surprised him even more. How could a forbidden spell be romantic, he had no idea...

With George, they were selling illegal love potions but he was quite sure that the spell had nothing to do with their illegal brew...

...

Hermione revealed that the name of the spell was coniunctionem aeternam. She added that it could only be cast once by a woman on a man.

« A woman had to cast the charm on the man that she loved or used to love. The woman could be his mother, wife, sister, any close blood related but she could also be an ex lover. I know that we had never been together but we had feelings for each other's at the same time. » she stopped for a brief moment and bit her lips.

Fred was so quiet that she did not know what to think but she did go on with her story.

« I was desperate, it was my only chance, I had to try and anyway it was not written that the man had to returned those feelings so even if you had lied to me at the wedding, it did not matter. »

Fred interrupted her to tell her that he had not lied. From pink her cheeks had turned red but she ignored the heat that was invading her body, she had to continue.

« The woman was casting the spell before to let her man go to war to protect his soul and his heart so the man would stay true to his principles but more than that the spell had caught my attention because it also had the power to save the life of the man. By protecting the heart and the soul, it also meant that the connection between the brain and the heart could not be broken, in other word the man could not die, that part worked one time only but that was enough for me. I guess that it is illegal today because of the kind of immortality that it was given to the cherished man » stated Hermione who believed that this was indeed a very logical explanation.

...

She was almost done, her torture was almost over and she was surprised because Fred had only interrupted her once. She heard noises from the kitchen and she suddenly remembered that she had no time left, she had to hurry up.

« It meant that I had one chance but I had read everything so carefully that I knew that I would not misspell the incantation or the movement of my wand so I waited for Percy to finish his joke and casted the spell right before the explosion, few seconds before but it had been enough. When I ran back to Great Hall, you were still lying on the floor but you were alive. I had not used a forbidden spell and broken almost all the wizarding laws for nothing. » she said with a grin

Breaking the law was bad, she knew it but at least every time that she had broken one, it had turned into a meaningful action.

...

Fred was amazed, no doubt she was a real Gryffindor that was why the sorting hat had not sent her to Ravenclaw. Fred had always admired her bravery, even when she was an unbearable 12 years old know it all, back then her bravery was already noticeable. He was also really touched, he had never heard of that spell but the fact that it had worked meant that her feelings for him had been real and that was priceless.

Maybe there was hope for them after all. He smiled, maybe Hermione would fall for the Fred that he had become. He still had three weeks to make it happen.

...

On Hermione's head something different was going on. It had not been easy for her but she was glad to have told him though she was disappointed. She had wished that Fred would have said something about her feelings for him or the spell... but since he had not, Hermione had decided to do not say a word more about that.

Anyway, she had no time to mope, she had to make Fred swear to do not say a word, not even to George and that was going to be complicated, Fred and George shared everything...

...

Few minutes later, Fred could still read fears in her eyes. Quickly, he understood the origin of her unease. He stood up and cupped her face with his hands. He told her that he would never ever betray her, that he would always be there to protect her no matter what.

« You saved my life, I am never ever going to forget it. Your secret is safe with me, it will forever be out little secret. Always and forever. » he promised and then he kissed her forehead

Hermione's heart was beating so fast that she was pretty sure that Fred could hear her heartbeats too. She was so nervous. She said that she knew that her secret was safe him but that she was worried about the Ministry and what would happen to her, to him, them if they found out.

Fred stroked her cheeks and told her that she was worrying too much. She shocked her head and repeated to him what Percy had told her a couple of weeks ago. It had made Fred laughed.

« I love my brother but Percy would be capable to send himself to Azkaban so I suggest you to do not listen to him. Even if they find out, Kingsley won't do anything against us, well against me perhaps but against you improbable. Don't let Percy make you feel ashamed» he started

She frowned and interrupted him

« I am not ashamed. I would do it again Fred. I would save you again without any doubt. I am just scared » she confessed redder than before

He placed his hands on her shoulders, gripped them tightly and spoke loud and clear.

« Nothing is going to happen to us, nothing. I will never let them take your wand and I will certainly never let them send me back to Death's arms. And I already have a solution in case we ever need one. » he affirmed dreamily.

« Which is. » she asked dubitative.

Fred looked too dreamy and she was afraid of what he could have thought of to save their arses.

« Don't ask me questions and I won't tell you lies. » he smirked

She rolled her eyes

« Frederik Gideon Weasley, you are such a tease. » she said laughing

« Thanks for the compliment. »

Her eyes narrowed

« Who said it was one. » she asked him

« The look on your face betrayed you but don't worry, I know that I am irresistible. » he affirmed still with his mischievous smile on his lips

« Fred, your confidence is disconcerting. » she replied still laughing

...

He joined her and they laughed for a couple of minutes before Fred became serious again. Hermione stopped laughing, she was staring at him confused.

She was anxiously waiting for him to speak, only few seconds had passed but each second felt like an eternity.

« Hermione, I could never ever repay you but I want you to know that I owe you one and a big one. I will do whatever you ask me to do even if it could send me to Azkaban, I don't care. I am here thanks to you. A simple thank you seems so dumb but anyway no word could describe how I feel. You did not just save my life, you gave me the opportunity to see life differently, to become a better person, to spend more time with the ones that I love and to live and that is priceless.» he said sincerely

« Are you going to stop your pranks then. » she smirked, she had to try that one

Fred shocked his head and chuckled.

« No that would be odd. Remember that I own a joke shop to pay the bills. Actually, I have so many ideas in mind for the shop, not trying them would be revolting though I might agree to do not test them on my brothers and my little sister. » said Fred elusive

« Good because you said that I could ask you whatever I wanted, be careful you might regret it one day. » she warned him with a smirk

« I am not scared of you Hermione and I am as good as you are at breaking rules. » he replied with a wink

« So you just lied to me, you won't do anything for me. » she replied falsely offended

He smirked and whispered into her ear.

« No that's not what I said. And no, I did not lie. I will do anything for you on the other hand doing something for the well being of others even if you ask nicely, I will have to think about it but for you anything you want. »

Having this conversation was easier than what he had imagined but that did not mean that he wanted Hermione to take his words lightly. He had meant each word.

His breath and his face were so close that Hermione had to bite her lips to do not let escape any siliness but she failed.

« So if I ask you to kill someone, you would be ready to do it. » she asked indifferently or at least she hoped that it sounded like that because Fred had managed to confuse her.

...

It was a recurring problem with the twins and specially with Fred. The line between the game and the truth was always so thin and foggy that it was easy to get muddle up and to fall into their trap. And the fact that Fred was always so flirty was not helping at all.

Hermione knew him, she knew that the line was always blurry but they were not talking about something random and she wanted to know what he really meant.

She had no doubt, he would never betray her but there was a huge difference between keeping a secret and putting your life in jeopardy for the well being of someone else. She would never ask him to do something that could compromise his freedom or his life but her admiration for him would become stronger, indestructible, if he replied positively.

It was a stupid thought, she knew it but she had taken a big risk and somehow she just wanted to be reassured that Fred had been worth it, that he was not underestimating her gesture, that he was not taking her gesture lightly, that they were on the same page.

She was feeling lonely and lost lately except when she was with Fred and she did not need another disillusion. She already had to accept the fact that Fred was probably being nice because he felt that he had to and that was enough.

...

She was waiting for his answer, he was still smirking.

«I am dab hand with potions so I will manage, as long as you don't ask me to kill George or Super Boy of course. You know how good his my little sister with hexes and I am not looking forward to go back to St Mungo and just between you and me, we both know that I am the best looking twin and I would like to keep the title.»

He winked at her and she bursted out laughing. It was a typical Fred's answer, was he serious, was he joking, she did not know and she probably would never find out. In that instant, she did not care though because the feelings of peace and joy that had just invaded her were overwhelming. When Fred was around, she had the feeling to be a yoyo because of her emotions' swirl.

...

They both laughed and before Hermione could react, Fred' strong arms were around her. Without thinking, she stood on her tip-toes and she wrapped her arms around his neck. As he felt her hands on his neck and his hair, he hugged her tighter.

It was the first time that they had hugged like that, their bodies were pressed against each other's. Hermione noticed how small she was next to him, he was so tall and his strong arms around her felt a bit too good. Her head was at the height of his heart, she listened his heartbeats and smiled.

Appeased, she let her head rested on his chest and closed her eyes.

Fred's heartbeats were the most beautiful sounds ever. His heartbeats were so meaningful for Hermione. His hands moved to her back, to her neck, shoulders and finally he cupped her face again, his long fingers fondling her cheeks.

He murmured a thank you and kissed her forehead. For a brief instant Hermione thought that he was going to kiss another part of her face, she wished he had and imagined how it would have felt.

Fred did think about kissing her but it was too soon, he had to wait a bit more.

...

In this exact moment Ron cleared his throat loudly and shouted at them. He had been there for few minutes already and since he had also believed that they were going to kiss, he had decided that it was about time to interrupt them.

« Dinner is served. »

...

next chapter will be on Tuesday.

Fred and Hermione aren't in deny anymore but I must warn you that this lack of communication regarding their feelings will go on for several chapters, of course things are going to happen between them (to complicate everything) but until a very specific moment neither Hermione or Fred will be honest about their feelings

let me know your thoughts!


	25. Chapter 21

New chapter.

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xx,

...

« Dinner is served. »

Instantly, Hermione and Fred pulled apart. Ron was glaring at them like never before.

Saying that Ron was angry was an understatement, until that moment he had never thought that his older brother could have feelings for Hermione, never, but he had seen his brother's face and he had instantly known that Fred was not playing.

...

Ron knew that look, he had seen it on Bill's face, his father, George, Harry and even on his own face and he angrily reckoned that he had seen that look on Fred's face too, many times during the twins' last year at Hogwarts, even before that perhaps. Back then Ron did not know what this face, what this smile, meant because back then he had not experienced love yet.

He was feeling betrayed by his older brother and his mad mind was, obviously, overthinking. Until that instant, he had believed that only Hermione had been playing with his feelings but now he was sure that they both, Hermione and Fred, had been enjoying this little charade and he was going to make them pay for that. He was going to make his older brother pay for stealing the only thing, though Hermione was not a thing, that he had thought that he would finally have for himself, something untouched by his brothers.

As he was picturing Hermione and his brother in more than just a hug, he was feeling sick. Hermione was supposed to be a virgin, well she said so during the horcruxes' hunt, but with Fred as her lover, Ron highly doutbed about the veracity of this fact. Not that he cared but that was one more lie from Hermione.

Over the years, Ron had been mad at Harry and Hermione quite often. He had many feuds with the young witch but he had never felt that furious.

He could not even look at Fred and Hermione. However, despite his nausea he was smirking because he was going to expose the traitors in front of everybody and specially in front of one person, his and Fred's mother.

For weeks, his family had been supporting Hermione, as usual for them, he was the one fussing. But finally, he was given the opportunity to demonstrate that he had been right all along. Actually, it was even worst than what he had been believing as Fred had for sure feelings for Hermione.

...

Ron knew that their mother would never approve Fred and Hermione's relationship. Ron was determined to destroy Hermione and Fred's relationship and he knew how to achieve his goal.

However, his anger was slowly turning into pain. Why did he always have to be the butt of the joke. He thought about Lavender, she did love him, she wanted him not one of his brother, maybe he should send her an owl.

He shocked his head, Lavender Brown could wait.

He turned over and walked as fast as he could to the kitchen.

...

After breaking their embrace Fred and Hermione looked away. They were avoiding each other's gaze. As Ron, they were overthinking, they feared what Ron could have in mind.

Fred looked at his brother who was only few meters away from the kitchen's door and without thinking, he took Hermione's hand in his, their eyes met and they understood each other's without word.

They almost ran to the kitchen, walking as fast as they could behind an angry Ron. They could not let him step into the kitchen first. They had a pretty good idea of what would happen once Ron would be in the kitchen, their presence would not stop him but at least they would have the chance to justify themselves in font of the others though they both had one person in mind, Molly...

...

Breathless Hermione and Fred walked into the kitchen right after Ron. Ron was glaring them. He had expected Hermione and his brother to wait and define a plan before to come home. Maybe they already had a plan and this idea infuriated Ron more than he already was.

In silence, he sat between Harry and Percy ready to make this supper memorable. Indeed, he was lucky as the all family was present that night.

...

Molly's eyes had narrowed the moment that the three young adults had crossed the door.

She was observing her sons and Hermione, wondering what could have possibly happened this time. Fred was still holding Hermione's hand, he dropped it only when he realized what his mother was staring at.

Molly sighed, she was tired of Ron's attitude, of the fights between him and Hermione. She had thought, at first, that now that Fred was back at the Burrow, that Ron would come around and realize that there was absolutely nothing going on between Fred and Hermione but her ideas had clearly been mistaken.

She was angry at Hermione for not listening, at Fred for taking advantage of the situation, for using Hermione's feelings for him to make his little brother jealous. Yes for Molly, the idea of Fred liking Hermione was still not possible. And of course she was mad at Ron for doing a really poor job at trying to hide his jealousy.

Day after day nastier comments were coming out of Ron's mouth. Fred and Hermione were doing a good job at ignoring them but Molly knew Fred and his bad temper and it was a question of time before he would decide to give Ron a taste of his own medicine.

The only difference between them was that Ron would speak before to think because he was hurt while Fred would take time to think before to speak and would open his mouth only when he would be sure that his words would really hurt.

She could smell a big fight coming and she promised herself to have a chat with Ron, Fred and of course Hermione, separately after the big fight. She had had enough and she was going to end this feud and she perfectly knew how to do it.

She placed the plates on the table, took a sit and made herself comfortable. She was ready to wait for the big storm that she had been anticipated for a couple of days already.

...

Hermione and Fred briefly looked at each other before to look for empty seats as far as possible from Ron.

Obviously, for their despair, there were no more seats left except the two empty chairs in front of Ron, between George and Ginny.

...

Hermione and Fred tried to do not look at each other's or at Ron while eating. They were not paying attention to any of the conversation around them. They were waiting for Ron to speak. They were both mentally preparing their answers and both were thinking that they should have taken a couple of minutes to define a line to follow.

...

George was vainly trying to talk to his twin. George did not want any bomb to explode, he had feared this for days. He was feeling helpless, he could not help his twin as he had no idea of what Ron could have seen or heard. Moreover, George knew that Ron's anger was not the product of Ron's imagination and this was really dangerous.

He had once found, in one of his and Fred's illegal books, a love to forget potion. He had suggested that potion to Fred but Remus who was with them that day had warned them about the consequences of drinking such liquid. He had said that Fred would have no memory of Hermione at all but that since it was impossible to fool ones heart's desire Fred would simply fall in love with Hermione if she was his true love.

This had discouraged George who did not want to accept yet that Hermione might be a part of their quartet. One day their duo would become a quartet and truth be told he could not picture Hermione in this quartet. He wished that Angelina had a twin, that would be the perfect quartet for him...

...

Ginny and Harry were pretty much in the same situation. Neither Ron or Hermione were replying to their questions. Ron and Hermione were staring at their plates.

...

Everybody was waiting for the explosion. Actually most of them wanted the bomb to explode. They had a lot of questions, they were curious to know what was going on for real. Besides, they were now all pretty much convinced that Ron was not talking nonsense as Hermione and Fred were spending too much time together to pretend that they were simply friends.

Most of them did not care if Fred and Hermione were more than friends though they all had a deep desire to know when this odd relationship had really started. They just wanted to understand how this had started and when. Unlike their mother, most of them could indeed picture Hermione and Fred together but none of them could understand Hermione and Fred's silence about their relationship.

They all knew something, they all had got a bit of info. They all knew about Hermione's feelings for Fred. George, Percy and Charlie knew about Fred's feelings for Hermione. Percy knew about the time turner... but they had never shared their knowledge, they had promised to keep their secrets and the Weasleys were all loyals so they were all a bit lost...

They were wondering what could be so terrible, where Fred and Hermione hiding something, had they done something that they should not have which could explain why they had decided to keep their relationship secret. Ron could not be the only reason, it did not make any sense.

Nevertheless none of their theories had foundation.

As far as they all could remember Hermione and Fred had not been in touch since the twins had left school, except when Hermione had been at the burrow, but Hermione had spent the last ten months with Harry and Ron and the previous year she had not even come for Christmas which meant that if there was something, Hermione and Fred had been fooling everybody for two years already.

They really could not picture a secret relationship for so long, besides was not Hermione in love with Ron. Ginny had said so last Christmas and had not Fred been in a on/off relationship with that American witch Sophie for more than a year. Definitely, they needed answers because they were really confused and none of them dared to ask Fred and Hermione directly. They did not want to sound too curious besides they knew that Fred would certainly lie to them, had not he been lying for two years, had he, had Hermione too?

From the outside it looked like Ron had discovered the truth but what did Ron know that they did not, they were going to find out before to finish their dinner, they were positive about that.

...

The only one who was a bit more concerned than curious was Percy. Unlike his siblings, he was not buying the secret relationship theory. He firmly believed that something was going on but that it probably had a lot to do with what Hermione had done. Convinced that she must have told Fred, Percy thought that they were just thinking about a way to get rid of the time turner.

Though if he referred to the old tales that he had heard at the Ministry, a secret relationship could explain a lot. The spell that Hermione had used was really powerful and she must really loved Fred to have saved him from Death's arms.

He shocked his head persuaded that everything was connected and that Ron's bomb could drift far away from what his siblings and parents were expecting.

...

Ron was eating with rage, his eyes fixed on Fred and Hermione. As he was not paying attention to his plate or his table manners, it looked like a pig was eating at the table.

Disgusted when a piece of chicken fell in Ron's pumpkins juice, Ginny emitted a loud noise. She compared his table manners with the manners of trolls and said that actually trolls had better manners than him.

Arthur, Molly and Charlie agreed while Harry was trying to avoid his two best friends' eyes. As the rest of the family he was getting tired of Ron's attitude towards Hermione but he did not want to take a side. It was Hermione and Ron's business.

« It is their fault. » bawled Ron pointing with his oily index at Fred and Hermione

« Our fault. » exclaimed incredulously Fred and Hermione at the same time

Everybody was holding their breath waiting for the bomb to explode. They all knew that it was a question of minutes, perhaps seconds.

« Yes, you are both acting so innocently but I know the truth. It has been there for so long, I am such an idiot, I should have thought about it because you always take everything from me. » said Ron to Fred

« Your are a traitor and you, you are a, a, a tart that's what you are Hermione, you are worst than Fred. » he added full of rage

« You apologize right now Ron. How dare you to call Hermione a tart after everything she has done for you. » said Fred calmly which was surprising but Fred did not want his parents to intervene.

They had all expected Fred to jump down Ron's throat, astounded by his tone, they were staring at him.

...

« Everything she has done for me like what shagging my older brother behind my back. » barked Ron

Fred's eyes widened, he was not sure if he had heard correctly or not. Under other circumstances, he would have laughed, maybe...

« and made me believe that she was in love with me when she is indeed in love with you. For how long have you two been together, I demand an answer. I want to know for how long you have been playing with me Hermione, why did you pretend to like me when you have never stopped loving my brother» finished Ron glaring at Hermione

Finally Fred laughed, a forced laugh but what else could he do.

Considering how is siblings and parents were looking at him, he was pretty sure that they were thinking like Ron. They did not even look surprised, except their mother of course who was the only who was looking astonished. Perhaps she was finally connecting the girl of whom she desperately wanted to get the name and Hermione.

...

Fred's world was falling apart, what was he supposed to do. He had not thought that Ron would say such things. Sex was a big deal in the Weasleys' house and they had a rule, between brothers, which was to help each other's... but Ron had exposed them, it was really below the belt... and it was not even true. Moreover, he had never talked about sex with Hermione.

Also he could not ask Hermione if that was true, if she still had feelings for him that would be odd, neither could he confessed his undying love for her. It was too soon, he did not want things to be forced, he needed time, Hermione needed time.

But he could not let Ron go on.

...

Fred had forgotten that Hermione was there, next to him, he had not thought about the fact that she would say something. He had not anticipated her reaction and when Hermione opened her mouth, he looked at her oddly

« What. Have you gone mental Ronald, I mean more than usual. How many times do I have to tell you nothing is going on between me and any of your brothers.» replied Hermione furiously

« Of course, I am the crazy one. Don't play the innocent Hermione. I saw you. » growled Ron

« And what did you see Ron. » asked Hermione rolling her eyes

« You know what I saw, you bitchy know it all. You are disgusting. How could you do that to me. » snarled Ron

« I haven't done anything to you. You are mental and pathetic. How many times are we going to have this conversation. I always knew that your jealousy was insane but I would have never thought that you would turn into a complete moron. And just for the record Ron, I am free to do whatever I want, whenever I want with whoever I want. I am not yours, never had and I certainly never will. I already apologized for misunderstanding my feelings, now move on with your life and for God's sakes leave me alone» cried Hermione

« You don't even try to deny it anymore. Why him Hermione, why Fred, what does he have that I don't. » asked Ron furiously

Fred sighed, he had to clarify the situation because he did not want his mother to ask questions that would made him or Hermione uncomfortable. Hermione's speech had not done nothing but increasing everybody's doubts, he could see it in their eyes.

He had always wondered, when he had started to have feelings for Hermione, and in case they would have ended up together, how it would have been to tell his family, what their reactions and specially Ron's would have been. Well he, indeed, pictured something like that with the big exception that he would have kissed Hermione in front of his all familly which would have all shut them up.

He definitely could not do that though it was very tempting, they would all be stunned.

He shocked his head and reminded himself that he could not put in jeopardy his friendship with Hermione.

...

« Ron, nothing is going on between me and Hermione. Could you just please give us a break, I can feel the headache coming. » said Fred who had lowered his tone.

« You traitor, nobody has asked for your opinion. » yelled Ron

« A traitor, what the hell are you talking about Ron. I never betrayed you. » yelled back Fred

« You knew, both, that I like her. And you gave me this bloody book, pretty sure that you did it just to make fun of me. Waiting for me to make a fool of myself while you are with her. One of your stupid bet for sure. Ron the Monkey of the Weasley's circus. » said Ron who was now looking at Fred and George

« Stupid git. There is nothing going on between us, we told you already. Hermione is right, you need to be seen.» replied Fred

« Yes I need to be seen so does the rest of the family. Even George has doubts about what's going on between you two. You don't try to deny it, doubts are all over your face. I mean why would she spend so much time at the hospital at your bedside, why would she say that she is your girlfriend, yes I do know about it, and why are you two always together if nothing is going between you two. Do you seriously think that we are all brainless. Why don't you just fucking admit. Bloody hell.»

« I already explained all this Ron. Now it is enough. I am tired of this. I can't stand your bloody mood swings anymore. And for the last time, nothing is going on between Fred and I. And this is purely hypothetical but if we would be together so what, I can't be in love unless it is with you. I have no right to find happiness unless it is with you. You are so selfish and self centered that you cannot even think that maybe Fred would make me happy, happier than if I had chosen you » answered Hermione calmly

...

The last thing that Hermione wanted was to awoken more doubts, they could not find out about the time turner and she was ready to expose her feelings or even let them think that there was really something going between her and Fred.

She believed that it was safer than the truth. She would talk to Fred about that later.

...

« Purely hypothetical my ass, why don't you just admit it Mione, I want nothing else. » fulminated Ron

« Enough. Leave her alone. We've told you the truth. » insisted Fred

« So what you are going to play the defending boyfriend now. If you would have died under this wall, she would have chosen me.» argued Ron

His comment had let everybody speechless. They were all glaring at him. Hermione pushed her chair away. She could not believe what Ron had just said, nobody could. Fred was his brother, not a stranger. The worst part of all this was that Hermione believed that Ron actually meant it.

« I am sorry Mrs Weasley but I have just lost my appetite. » she said

She stood up and heard Fred saying me too. He pushed his chair away and walked towards the stairs where Hermione already was.

« Oh yeah go upstairs, lock yourselves in the room but don't forget the silencing charms » claimed Ron with a smirk.

His plan had not worked, he had thought that his family would be against Fred and Hermione's relationship, they were not but he did not care. He still had a lot in stock. He knew how to destabilize Hermione.

« Fred, leave it. He is not worth it. He is looking for a fight. » stated Hermione who had firmly gripped Fred's right arm

Ron raised his glass of pumpkin juice.

« To the couple of the year. Hermione, you do know that he is with you just because he is bored and shagging you is a good way to spend his rest time, don't you. Once he will be back to his flat with George, he won't even remember your name. At least, you won't be the last virgin of all the 7th years once you will be back to school. Fred, I take my hat off to you, can't believe she gave you her precious virginity though I do think that if you wanted to give it to a jerk Mione, you should have chosen Krum, at least he is famous » smirked Ron

He drank his glass of pumpkin juice, even the pieces of chicken that were drowned in it.

« You are going to wish that the wall had fallen on you little brother. If I catch you, you will regret every word you had just said. » replied Fred furiously

Hermione again stopped Fred which made Ron smirked. She had understood what Ron was looking for. And he had won, he had humiliated her again. Exposing her like that, exposing a bunch of lies to take her down. She was going to pack her things and move in with Andromeda, she could not spend three more weeks in this house.

...

« Oh Hermione, you have no idea what you have gotten involved. Don't come crying on my shoulders after he has left you knocked up. » warnec Ron

« Fred leave it, he just wants to upset you. Don't play his game. » insisted Hermione who could feel Fred's rage

« Come on Fred listen to your girlfriend. I did not know that you like them bossy. » moked Ron

Fred pushed Hermione away and walked back to the table. Arthur, Bill and Charlie had stood up already. But Fred only warned his little brother.

« Ouh I am scared. » chuckled Ron who was pleased with himself

...

Their gazes met and Fred smirked. Whatever Ron was trying to obtain, he was not going to get it.

« You should, just wait. Now, if you excuse me we have better things to do. Don't worry I won't forget the silencing charm, I don't want your poor ears to listen how it does really sounds when women are satisfied. » said Fred with his devilish smile

Ron had wanted to create a show, Fred was simply demonstrating that he was the master in this discipline. They were all astounded, Ron included.

Without further ado he walked towards the stairs, took Hermione's hands and took her upstairs. Hermione followed him without thinking, what else could have she done anyway. Going back to the table to finish her plate with all the Weasleys and Harry staring at her, yes that was a wonderful idea.

...

Fred closed the door of he and George's room behind them. He muttered a silencing charm without his wand and locked the door with a click of his fingers. Hermione did not know that he could do wandless magic though it was not really surprising.

Nervous, she was standing in the middle of the room not really sure about what to do or even why Fred had taken her upstairs, to his room. He could not possibly be thinking about putting his words into practice, could he. She had thought about pretending not doing anything, maybe Fred had been thinking differently.

Her cheeks were suddenly burning. She had to tell him something important.

Fred, who was sat on his bed, the purple sheets and pillows cases contrasting with his orange hair, was observing her. He laughed and told her to relax. He affirmed that he just wanted to shut up his little brother's mouth.

« I am not going to ask you to do anything except talking unless you feel like doing something more interesting of course. » he grinned mischievously

If he had known what her answer would have been, he would not have made any comment.

« I am a virgin Fred. »

...

next chapter on saturday or sunday but the line is here, pretending but where is the limit going to be...

They have to protect their secret, the time turner what she has done at any price...

let me know your thoughts and thanks for following :)


	26. Chapter 22

Next chapter

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Lillith1, it will still take some times to have properly together but soon :)

xx,

...

« I am a virgin Fred. » said Hermione. It had come out of her mouth, loud and clear.

Stone faced, she had not turned red or white. She was still standing in the middle of the room, pulling on the sleeves of her light blue cashmere jumper.

However, she had let Fred speechless.

...

Even if he had disliked the idea, very much, he used to believe that the rumors about Hermione and Krum were true. Angelina had told him so and he was pretty sure that he had overheard Ginny telling Ron that Krum had left England with Hermione's V Card. It had been the summer after the triwizard tournament.

Ginny had probably said it to infuriate Ron but in that moment Fred had not thought further. He just had a silly crush on Hermione before their summer at Grimmauld Place so that information had not touched him that much back then though it had annoyed him deeply after that summer and not just because of the little problem between muggle born witches and pureblood wizards.

But on the other hand, he had heard Ron babbling about his love life with Lavender and how he had been the first of the trio to loose his virginity. Fred had never really believed his little brother but it had been comforting to think of Hermione as a virgin. When had Ron been the first to do something, as far as Fred could remember never but Ron had clearly not lied about that.

He sighed, so many questions were unanswered...

...

His thoughts kept somewhere in his mind, under the label, to deal with later, Fred was looking for something to say, something to get rid of the silence.

He was feeling a bit stupid for dragging Hermione into his room. But he was also feeling relieved, relieved because nobody had touched Hermione. The idea of her with Krum had given Fred countless nightmares but now he knew that he could forget about those images. His desire to be the first was back on his mind, front row and that was another big problem to sum to the already long list of to deal with later...

He sighed again, he could not find anything to say that would not sound dumb, perverse or offensive.

...

Also, he could not help but wondering about the whys and hows.

Hermione had dated an internationally famous Quidditch player, she must had done more than what she had been willing to tell his little brother and Harry. He, unfortunately, had no idea about what she had already experienced, about what she knew and that consuming him.

Did she know that contraceptive spells and potions, except one, would not work if she had intercourses with a pure blood wizard, at least until she had given birth to her first magical child. She was the brightest witch of her generation that was for sure but she had been raised in the Muggles' world and hers and Harry's lack of magical culture had often been pointed out. Morever there was no sexual education at Hogwarts, so who knew which knowledge she really had about this delicate subject... He had never talked about sex with Hermione and maybe it was about time to break this iceberg.

After all, if she had pictured herself with him, she must had been thinking about him, them, doing more than just talking, he definitely had done that quite often...

It was not going to be easy but he was already thinking about a plan to get some answers.

...

With a smile on his face, he looked at her and cleared his throat as if this could help to diffuse the tension.

« So it is true then. I did not know, sorry if I offended you with my comments. I had no idea. » he said gently

He tapped on his mattress, hoping that Hermione would come and sit next to him.

She did though she did not dare to look at him yet. She was staring at George's empty bed.

...

Nervous, Fred giggled and Hermione sent him a dirty look. She asked him what was so funny.

« My baby brother is thinking that we are shagging when you are a virgin. It is a bit comical, isn't it» he replied gently

He did not want to upset her more than she already was but he was amazed by the absurdness of the situation.

« Last time I checked being a virgin was not a crime. » replied Hermione who was looking at her feet as if her old grey converse could help her to get out of this spiderweb. She noticed that the floor was full of stains, the result of the twins' experiences for sure.

« Oh no, no that's not what I meant. Hermione, do not misunderstand me please. I am just surprised that you still are a virgin but I think that it is great. » said Fred sincerely

« Liar. » she said finally looking at him.

She was waiting for a smirk or a wink, but none came. Fred was just observing her and Hermione thought again that he was pitying her.

...

She wanted to disappear. She should not have said anything but once Fred had locked the door, her mind had been looking for an escape and the truth had been the only excuse that seemed to be strong enough to stop whatever Fred had in mind.

However, she was thinking that maybe she should have waited for Fred to explain himself first instead of jumping to conclusions. Or maybe she should just have lied down on Fred's bed and accepted whatever would have occurred from there. She would not have had to justify anything, she could have said that she was just pretending and with that wonderful excuse she could have, perhaps, finally kissed Fred.

She was going crazy. Again, nothing but her own mind had been imagining things. She was the one who deep down wished to turn Fred's words into action.

For months, not a single sexual thought had crossed her mind but this had changed. Over the last week, several images had been infiltrating her mind and all of them included a bed and a certain tall, sexy redhead, indeed something very similar to the actual set, they were just wearing too many clothes.

She shocked her head and tried to focus on the reality of the moment but it was becoming harder and harder to put her not so pure thoughts aside.

...

« You don't have to be nice Fred. You have the right to think that I am a prude, I won't be mad at you. I am not a nun, I am just waiting for the right guy that's all. » she said nervously

« I am not lying, I swear. I regret pretty much everything about my first time, specially the girl so I understand that you want to save it for someone really worth it but you should be aware that many believe that Krum had left Hogwarts with your V Card. » he had to tell her about what many believed.

« What, I was 15 years old. » she replied offended

« Precisely, how old was Ginny with Dean or most of the girls at school the first time. » exclaimed Fred who had been surprised by Hermione's reaction.

How could she not know what the all school had been babbling about for weeks after the Yule Ball. He was impressed and dubious at the same time. She could not be lying, could she. Fred did not know what to think.

...

Hermione sighed, Fred was right. Most of the girls that she knew, including her Muggles' cousins or neighbors, had lost it between 15 and 17 years old. She felt terribly old and awkward. She grimaced and looked for Fred's eyes.

When his eyes met hers, he decided to believe her. Hermione was not a liar and she looked too abashed to be trying to fool him.

« Exactly my point Hermione but you should not be ashamed, you should be proud. I guess that Ron thought that he would get your V card, I suppose that he would have framed it next to Lavender's one. » said Fred rolling his eyes as he was slowly piecing together all the pieces of Ron's puzzle

« Could we not talk about your brother' sexual life or about my lack of sexual experience please. And why did you bring me here. » croaked Hermione

« I did not take you with me thinking that we would do something more than talking. We could not stay downstairs, I would have ended up strangling my little brother. I am really sorry if I have made you uncomfortable. » said Fred who was trying to justify himself

She shocked her head, smiled at him and murmured that she was fine.

Relieved Fred affirmed cheerfully that he just wanted to give Ron a bit of his own medicine. He added that Ron just wanted to upset her and made her believe that no one except him would ever want to be with her. He insisted on the fact that Ron was trying to hurt her.

« And he was trying to get my family against us. I know what he was looking for, it did not work so he focused on you. The jerk knows how to get to you. » sighed Fred. Ron was a real pain...

Hermione nodded while a tear was falling on her cheek.

Hesitantly, Fred passed an arm around her shoulders. She did not push him away, quite the contrary actually. She let her head rest on his shoulder while her left hand was looking for the time turner, her fingers were skimming the delicate chain.

Fred looked down and stared at the little magical object that he had only seen once, many years ago, after his first hours of detention with Pr McGonagall. She had left him and George alone for less than five minutes but it had been enough time for the twins to find the necklace. They did not try to _borrow_ it, they thought that it was just a necklace and had believed it until they had heard Ron explaining how Hermione had used Pr McGonagall's time turner during her third year.

However, they were so focused on the development of their products that they had never tried to find it again. Besides, that was too much trouble, even for them. Hermione really had taken a big risk to save his life. He moved a bit and buried his nose in her hair, his lips kissing her temple.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and sighed content, Ron and his painful words no longer existed. Fred wrapped his free arm around her waist, he was as pleased as Hermione.

...

They did not know how they had ended up in this position and they did not care. In Fred's arms Hermione was feeling safe, really safe, a feeling that she had never experienced with anybody except her father's arms when she was a little girl. She had just revealed one of her big secret and she had been gladly surprised to see that Fred was understanding and approving her choice.

She was thinking about the girl who had been his first though she did not want to know who was that girl yet. She could not help but think that maybe Fred would not regret his choice if she had been his first, if it had happened just like she had pictured it when she was sixteen. She had briefly thought about using the time turner to go back to 1996, that was why she had touched it, but then she had remembered that Fred had ordered her to let 1996 go so she had hidden the pendant under her jumper while wishing to experience, one day, and hopefully with Fred, something as beautiful as she had imagined.

...

Fred and Hermione wished that they could stop time and stay like this forever.

...

Several minutes passed before Fred finished to say what he had started ealier about his little brother.

« You know, Ron is going to be confused and be wondering if there is really something between us. He is going to avoid us, thanks Merlin and chew over it for few days before to finally accept the situation and go on with his life. He never thought that I could like you so his plans are dismissed. We should be safe from now on » assured Fred

« But I don't want him to think that I did not choose him because of you. I want him to understand that I am not in love with him and that I don't want to be with him. » she replied raising her gaze to meet Fred's eyes

« He will understand but for now believe me, he is going to be so pissed off that he won't talk to us at least for a couple of days up to a week and I am really going to appreciate it » smiled Fred

Hermione bit her lips, Ron might be considered a resolved problem but what about the others, what about Molly. She shared her fears and insecurities with Fred. She said that she was ready to pretend that something was going on between them if that could help. She insisted on the fact that they had to protect their secret above all and that faking that they were in love would, for sure, dissolve the others' doubts.

She told Fred that it was better for his family and Harry to believe that they were together as it meant that none would try to look further.

Fred vigorously shocked his head, he was certainly not going to pretend anything. Not that he would be pretending much anyway as the only thing that he had in mind was to kiss Hermione but he did not need the situation to become more confusing than it already was.

A bit disappointed Hermione let escape a long sigh that Fred interpreted wrongly. How could he guess that she wanted them to _pretend_ to be together.

...

« Nobody is going to find about the time turner, our secret is safe besides they are my family. If Percy had not called an audience then I think that we are safe. And Hermione, they all know that you and I are not locked in this room trying to find out if I can make you scream louder than a mandrake. There are strict rules under this roof and believe me, even I do not dare to break some of those stupid rules.» affirmed Fred

« Even your mother. » asked Hermione worriedly

« I will deal with her, don't worry. » assured Fred though he had no idea about what he would have to do to convince his mother that they were just friends.

...

After that Hermione told Fred that she wanted to leave the Burrow sooner than expected. She could not cope with another week of fights and suspicion. Fred's hugged her tighter as if this was going to be enough to stop her from leaving. He asked to stay at least another week. He promised her that they would have fun. If he wanted to have another real chance, Hermione could not leave yet. There were so many places and things that he wanted to show her. He wanted her to get to know the Fred that he had become and for that he needed time.

He released her, stood up and started to show her a list of products that he and George were working on. He took out some samples from one of the trunks that was hidden under George's bed and let Hermione explore by herself. He wanted to demonstrate her that he was worth her love, that he had enough in stock to keep her busy for a life time.

Fred also showed her his and George's collection of old books. Ancient potions, spells and charms books from the past centuries.

« Wow I am impressed, I've never heard of most of them. How did you get them. » asked Hermione, sat on Fred's bed again, who had forgotten about all their problems.

Books and Fred had that effect on her... And Fred could not be happier. He had not forgotten about what he wanted to talk about but he preferred to let the sex talk for another day.

« Auction sale, Mundungus of course, don't tell mum. Sirius also sold us many, you know how much he wanted to get rid of everything that ever belonged to the Black's family. Those books are helping us a lot and believe it or not but we are also finding inspiration in some of those books. »

« Trascendental magic, the secret garden, practical handbook of plant alchemy, unfogging the future, Fred really. » teased Hermione

« First edition and signed by Cassandra herself. You would be surprised what this woman saw. » insisted Fred while Hermione was giggling

« Can I borrow trascendental magic. » she asked grinning. It was like Christmas for her.

« Sure. » said Fred with a wide grin

« And what's this one, stories about strange women. Hallucinogenic plants, seriously, are you selling drugs now, I thought that you were just smoking » she said raising an eyebrow

« First one is very interesting, according to Sirius, it was Marlene McKinnon bible and one day you might need something from that book. And no, we aren't selling drugs but plants are basic to create our products and we need to know everything about them. So any help is good. » shrugged Fred who did not want Hermione to ask too many questions just yet

« I am impressed, I've never seen those books. I am quite sure that some of them are actually on the forbidden list. Of course, I always knew that there were many books that weren't at Hogwarts, not even on the restricted section but still those are far beyond what I could have ever imagined. » she said enthusiastically

« George and I think exactly the same thing. We were a bit reluctant to pay the price that we paid for them, we did not know if we could trust Mundungus but we don't regret any galleon spent on those treasures. » affirmed Fred

« I can understand. I wished I would have known before about those books, our quest would have been easier. Thank you Fred for sharing all this with me. It means a lot to me. » she said blushing

She had not seen much yet of Fred's world's but what she had seen so far seemed fantastic.

Fred laughed and told her that unfortunately for her, she would become the Minister of Magic. However, he added that she was welcomed at the shop whenever she wanted.

She laughed too and moved closer to him.

...

She was laying next to him. The bed was so small that she was pressed against Fred's body.

They were talking and looking into each other's eyes though the only thing that Hermione could think about was Fred's fingers running over her arm and back. Her heart was pounding wildly, Fred was too close. She did not know what to do with her body so she stayed still. She placed one of her hand under the pillow and let the other one resting on Fred's chest. He was wearing a shirt and she was playing with the upper buttons. She could feel his heart beating, it was also beating furiously.

...

Both were fighting their desire because they were still thinking that the other's was not feeling the same. They were wrong. If only one of them had said something, they would have been together from that night but unfortunately when Hermione spoke it was to express her fears about the rest of the inhabitants of the Burrow.

« It is getting late. I am sure that they're done with supper. It is past 9pm, it is strange that we haven't seen anybody yet, don't you think. » she asked nervously

« I don't think it is weird. I was not expecting them to come. I told you already, they do not think that we are doing anything except Ron and I do even have doubts about what he might be really thinking but that doesn't mean that a part of them isn't imagining that they could walk on something that they do not want to see. Would you have dared to come upstairs and open this door. »

She frowned, she did not know what she would have done and she told him.

« Well then you know what people say, in doubt, refrain from doing something that you could regret. » teased Fred

« I am still preoccupied. » croaked Hermione

« Just forget about them. Soon they are all going to go to bed anyway and then you will be able to go back to Ginny's room. »

Hermione flushed, she had not think about that...

« Fred, I don't think that I can handle Ginny's grilling. I was thinking that maybe I could spend. » she could not achieve her sentence, her throat was too dry

« You can stay here. As long as you don't snore more than George of course. » joked Fred who could not believe what he had just heard.

« Oh George, I forgot. » whispered Hermione worriedly. She was concerned about what George would say, she knew that he was not her biggest fan though she had no idea why.

Fred placed his index on her lips.

« Relax, he can sleep in Percy's room. Ginny might be a bit annoyed as she is sneaking up there each night to sleep with Harry but I really don't care. » replied Fred with a grin

She simply nodded. She was too nervous to add anything.

...

The events of the evening had been unexpected but Fred would not change anything that had happened as everything had led Hermione to ask him to spend the night with him. He drew nearer, his face was inches away from hers. He wanted a kiss, just one kiss.

« I've never shared a bed with a boy, a man before. » she said before Fred would be too close.

Nothing could happen, not yet. She did not even know if she was ready, she believed that she was but was she. She needed a girls' talk or ten first.

« Me neither. » smirked Fred who had unfortunately expected her to react like that.

She giggled though she said that it was not funny.

...

They pulled apart only to take off their shoes and belts. They did not dare to pronounce the word pajama just like Hermione did not dare to take off her bra even if she hated to sleep with it, just like she hated to sleep in her jeans.

They, clumsily, slipped under the purple blanket. Fred was making an effort to do not burst into laughter. He had slept and done more than that with few women but for some reason the simple idea of sharing his bed with Hermione was making him extremely nervous. He wanted her so badly that thinking straight was taking all his strength away.

Hopefully, Hermione would stay still, if she touched him or made a wrong move, he would loose control, he knew it just like he knew that he could not, it would be too dangerous.

After their talk, he was convinced that Hermione did not know that only one potion would be effective in their case, a very complicated potion that it was impossible to find after the book burning orchestrated by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. The receipt was in Marlene's old book but he would not tell her that either, at least not yet.

There would be a perfect moment to tell her everything, he just had to wait for it.

...

next chapter on friday


	27. Chapter 23

New chapter

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...

About an hour later when George went to bed followed by Charlie, Ginny and Harry, he got a big surprise... As he was opening the door of his and Fred's room, he had to muffle a scream, Hermione and Fred were asleep in each other's arms. Legs and arms tangled. Both were smiling.

...

Upset and schocked, George, quietly, closed the door of the room and asked Charlie if he could stay in his room, Charlie nodded. He did not mind having company besides Bill's bed was empty. He also had a lot of questions and he believed that George could enlighten him.

« You don't think that Ron is right, do you. » asked a confounded Charlie

George shooked his head and affirmed that Fred would have told him though he was not a hundred percent sure about that. If Fred had forgotten to mention anything, George would be hurt, very hurt.

« And Hermione would have told us, I guess. If Mum finds out that they are sleeping in the same bed, she is going to kill them. I would pay a galleon to see her face. » giggled Ginny for whom the situation was very funny

« You are evil Gin. » replied George spitefully

« I've learnt from the best. » she answered pettily

She did not care about George's opinion.

« and I don't even want to think about Ron because he doesn't really think that they are together, he doesn't believe that Fred could ever like Hermione, what an idiot » she continued boastfully

Ginny was a fervent Fred and Hermione' supporter, perhaps the only real one with Andromeda, and the vision of them sleeping together was heartwarming. She was going to reprimand Hermione for not telling her anything, she was so excited, she could not wait to hear about all the details.

« Ron should really learn how to put his anger apart and learn to observe because one day he might get a big surprise. » added Charlie

« Ron, observe, on which planet are you leaving Charles. » mocked Ginny

They all laughed but quickly Charlie became serious again and asked if Fred was still in love with Hermione. Harry and Ginny stared at him but George frowned suspiciously and asked his older brother how he had found out.

Charlie shrugged.

« I spend hours with Dragons, they don't talk. I am very good at observing and I might have heard something at Bill and Fleur's wedding. » he said innocently

« Like what. » asked Harry, Ginny and George at the same time. Charlie had piqued their interest.

« Like those two idiots confessing that they did have feelings for each other's during you and Fred's last year at hogwarts. » answered Charlie with a grin

« Really. » said the three others totally disconcerted

« Yeah really. » nodded Charlie before to explain that what he had witnessed a bit less than a year ago.

...

...

_1st of august 1997_

_Fred was, alone, at the bar, he was refilling his glass of firewhiskey for the third time._

_He had told George and Fleur's cousins that he was thirsty but it was a lie, he just needed a break. He knew Annabelle and Anne-Lisa very well, well more Annabelle than her sister, and he was enjoying their company but he had felt the need to have one last look at someone else._

_He was trying to do not look directly at her, he did not want Ron to catch his gaze. Indeed, Fred was watching Hermione dancing with his little brother. She was that someone that he wanted to look at one last time._

_..._

_He could not explain why but he had the sensation that he would not see her for a long time, nerver again perhaps, once the wedding would be over. He knew that the Golden Trio was planning to leave, he vaguely knew why though he had not really understood much, anyway who could have with the few details that Ron had given..._

_..._

_He finished his third glass and stared at the bottle, was a fourth glass appropriate, certainly not but he was feeling sad, empty, cold and the ambar liquid burning his throat was stopping him from crying._

_If he could feel jealous at least but he could not. He could not be jealous of his little brother for winning the witch's heart as he had not even tried to win her heart first. He had countless opportunities but he had never plucked up the courage to ask her out.  
He was thinking that you could not really loose something that you never really had, could you? He did not have the answer...Yet it hurt just as bad_

_Anyway, it was too late to have regrets, Fred knew that he had lost the woman of his dreams, his everything. But who would have thought that Ron was going to win, many actually and Fred could only blame himself as he had not even tried to fight._

_..._

_In her lavender dress, Hermione was looking beautiful. Fred sighed, he __could not even ask for a dance, Hermione would not understand, Ron would not, nobody would._

_Fred was blaming himself, he should have told her how he was feeling before to leave school, now it was too late. He really was about to cry._

_..._

_His gaze briefly met hers and Fred felt his heart pounding faster. Why did he have to fall in love with Hermione Granger, why and why did his heart's desire have to be in love with his little brother._

_He served himself another glass and chuckled as he was thinking how pathetic his situation was.  
_

_He turned over, he had got his last look. Now, he could leave, he could let her go. His heart was broken but what could he do. He had lost not just a battle, he had lost the war, a long time ago._

_..._

_Leaning on the bar, he had not paid attention that someone was coming behind him. The alcohol was starting to make effect so he was feeling a bit better. He closed his eyes and finished his sixth glass._

_Eyes closed, he smelt a perfume that he could recognize even in the most crowded street, he reopened his eyes to be sure that the fire whiskey was not confusing his senses.  
_

_It was not an hallucination, Hermione was standing next to him. Her cheeks were red, her hair was no longer silky and she was drinking a glass of water as if she had not drunk for days._

_« Don't look at me like that, I had not danced, not even once since the Yule Ball. I am even wondering if your brother is not trying to kill me. » she said coolly _

_« Keeping you away from Viktor, most likely. » smirked Fred who knew that he had to recover his senses and his poker face as soon as possible._

_Hermione blushed and looked away. Not because of Fred's comment but because of Fred himself. He was looking very handsome, too handsome._

_..._

_« So Granger ready to go save the world with Super Boy and my prat of little brother » teased Fred while he was printing in his mind the image of Hermione in her lavender dress_

_« I don't know if we are ready but we don't really have a choice. » she said oddly_

_« I have to admit that I admire you even if you are a bit of a masochist. » stated Fred_

_Hermione frowned_

_« Masochist, I did not know that you knew that word but thanks for the compliment, it was one, wasn't it. » she asked nervously. She never knew what to think when he was around._

_« It was and they are so many things that you don't know about me Granger. So many. » he teased and then he sighed, a deep sigh_

_« Like what, enlighten me Frederik. » she asked raising an eyebrow. _

_She was confused, Fred seemed to be upset and she was wondering why._

_He laughed, she had caught him off guard.  
_

_..._

_He was observing her, he was thinking about what to answer. What did he have to loose, nothing, moreover he had the feeling that it was his very last chance to tell her that he was in love with her.  
_

_She had the right to know, had not she?! he thought_

_« First don't call me Frederik. »he said pointing his index at the young witch._

_He was going to tell her, the Fred Weasley's way of course, though it might not had been his best idea..._

_« Don't call me Granger then. » she smirked_

_« Ok, I won't anymore, Hermione. » he winked at her_

_« Good, so what should I know about you. » she said giggling.  
_

_She was nervous. Even if she no longer had feelings for him, his presence, voice, him just him were always giving her goosebumps. Fred would remain an unwritten chapter, one that she had really wanted to write. _

_..._

_« Well now that you are asking and considering the fact that I might never see you again. » he said rubbing his chin_

_« Fred. » she scolded_

_Her smile had faded, the thought of never seeing him again was unbearable. _

_« What, it is true. I am realistic Hermione so I think that you should know that I did fancy you. » he said seriously, his smirk too had faded. _

_Now, she could leave with Harry and his brother. Fred was not expecting her to say anything. He just wanted her to know how he was feeling. He had lied a bit but he could not pronounce the three words in that moment, if they both survived he promised to himself that he would tell her: I love you and explain her everything. If they both survived..._

_..._

_« When. » she asked abruptly which surprised Fred._

_« I started to fancy you about a year, two years ago during our last year at school. » answered Fred who was confused as Hermione seemed to be upset_

_« Why are you staring at me like that. » he asked worriedly_

_« Because I had a crush on you during my fifth year. Well, I always found you attractive but after spending the summer with you at Grimmauld Place, I started to develop real feelings for you. I can't believe that you had feelings for me too, why is life so unfair.» she said shooking her head._

_She could not believe it, she had wished for that moment to happen for so long but now, now was just the worst timing ever besides there was Ron..._

_« Well then we can admit that we had both been idiots. At least, I feel relieved to know that it was not one sided. » he admitted while looking at his empty glass.  
_

_He would have to finish the bottle. The alcohol would anaesthetize him, not feeling anything was exactly what he wanted._

_« Is that why you never said anything. » she asked while glancing at the dancefloor to be sure that nobody was coming_

_« Indeed. » he said in a sigh_

_« But wait you were dating Angelina and she broke up with you. » stated Hermione who was wondering if Fred could be joking._

_« Oh yeah, she broke up with me and why do you think she did it. » smirked Fred_

_Hermione's throat was dry, she had a knot in her stomach, she was sweating and she knew that she was about to cry. It was too late, they had missed their chance but they could have had one and that was infuriating her so badly. If only she could ho back on time... She wished..._

_« I am sorry if I had known. » she croaked_

_Fred interrupted her, he had to or he would have regrets. He had already accepted that he had lost her and that had been enough to cope with._

_« Don't be Hermione, please don't be sorry, we can't be sorry. There is no place for an if I had known or a what if, not when we are at the beginning of a new war, not when you are leaving to a suicide mission with Harry and my baby brother and that the chance that we might see each other again is really thin. I just wanted you to know in case, you know if one of us die but please don't be sorry. »_

_« I know, I am sorry. I should go. I had promised Victor a dance, he might be waiting for me. » she said hastily._

_She did not want Fred to see her crying. She drank another glass of water and turned over, ready to walk away.  
_

_..._

_Fred seized her hand, there was one las thing that he wanted to tell her._

_« Hermione, you and the two weirdos, you are going to succeed, if someone can do it, it is definitely you three. You are the most amazing woman that I've ever met in my life, you will succeed. Whatever it is, you will succeed. Have faith. » he said honestly_

_« Thank you. Fred reckless time is over. Be safe and please be careful.» she said pleading_

_« You too, goodbye Granger. » he whispered_

_He__ winked at her and she made an effort to smile. It was that or tears for both._

_« Goodbye Frederik. » she whispered too as she was walking away._

_She could not look back, the first tear had fallen on her cheek and more were coming. If only she could go back on time. She never had the feeling to have lost Fred as she never had him but her feeling had just changed, forever. _

_She looked at Ron, and for a moment, did not see him as her future, she turned to have one last look at Fred but he was already gone. She chuckled and shooked her head, as always Fred was gone.  
_

_She sighed and joined Ron, whom she believed to be her future because Ron would always be there, no matter what, would not he?! Besides, she never had to time to chase after Fred and the timing was no better than before._

_She chased away the image of Fred, she had horcruxes to chase. Fred was a dream that would never become true, she had accepted it, a long time ago already... Krum was her past, Fred a dream and Ron her future._

_End of the FB_

_..._

_..._

« It was one like being in one of those Muggle's romantic comedies. I am not legilimen but it was not hard to guess what they were thinking. I had been so surprised by Fred, the words that came out of his mouth, he must had really loved her. » affirmed Charlie

Ginny had her hands on her heart, she had been touched. She was tough but she was a girl and like every girl, romanticism had an effect on her. She would have loved to witness Fred and Hermione's exchange, even if the issue had been gloomy. She told her brothers and boyfriend that she had no idea about Fred's feelings. Harry smiled and said that he had no idea about anything which was worst.

« You should have seen his face when he turned over and saw me right behind him. He turned white and told me that if my tongue ever slip out, he would used me as a guinea pig for at least a decade. » added Charlie with a genuine smile

Ginny's brain was already working on some plans to wed Fred and Hermione. She shared few of her ideas with her brothers and Harry. She was speaking with so much passion that Charlie and Harry were starting to freak out but they liked some of her ideas. However, George did not seem as cheerful as the rest of them and when Ginny asked what they should do first he snapped at her.

« How that what do we do Gin. We let them be. Gin, I am serious don't even think about it. »

Ginny argued, she said that Fred and Hermione would be a great couple, that they should help them to get together, if it was not already done, and that they should support them. George told them how hard it had been for Fred, he added that he did not trust Hermione enough to play with Cupid's arrows and begged them to do not try anything.

« But I know Mione and I am sure she still has. » started Ginny but George interrupted her

« Gin, no. Hermione is more confused than a confundus charm at the moment, not that long ago she was still thinking that she would become Mrs Ronald Weasley so I am sorry but I am not going to do anything and neither should you. I don't want to see Fred heartbroken again. » warned George

« Ok, I won't try anything » she lied

«But Hermione had never been in love with Ron, you are delusional if you think that. She focused on Ron because she believed that Fred would never like her. You've got Fred's point of view but you are missing hers and believe me, she was madly in love with him, I am sure she still is. Don't talk about what you don't know George, it makes you sound likes Ron. » added Ginny angrily

George shrugged and said that he did not care about Hermione's point of view. As long as he would not witness an act of love from her side, he would not support this union.

« I bet you whatever you want that they are gonna be together before Harry's birthday. »

« I won't bet on Fred's happiness Gin. Sorry. » snapped George

And he left them in the middle of the stairs and ran to Charlie's room.

...

Charlie and Ginny had waited for George to slam the door before to go on with their bet.

Harry did not bet, he was too shocked. However, when Ginny asked him if she could count on him, if he was going to help them and support Fred and Hermione's union, he answered positively.

Hermione deserved to be happy and loved and if she was in love with Fred, he was ready to move heaven and earth to help his best friend, his sister. The only one who had never given up on him, who had never turned her back on him.

Satisfied, Ginny kissed him passionately. Charlie rolled his eyes and told them to get a room. Ginny winked at him and dragged her boyfriend to Percy's room.

Charlie giggled, he had thought about going to sleep in there, he did not want to deal with a grumpy George but apparently he had no more options left. He was not going to sleep with Ron and he was not going to sleep in his little sister bed either so he went to his room praying for George to be either asleep or faking it.

He could not understand what was George's problem. Hermione was an amazing young woman, if he liked woman, he would have definitely tried to nail her, for sure.

...

On the following morning, Hermione awoken before Fred. She did not freak out or anything, she perfectly remembered when she had fallen asleep and that she was the one who had asked to stay. However, she was a bit worried regarding what would happen next.

She had a lot of questions in her head, like did someone open the door and had seen them on the same bed, sleeping, where had George been sleeping and of course she was a bit worried about what that night meant for her and Fred, for their relationship.

Nothing had happened that was true but for Hermione the simple fact that she had spent the night with him, needed to be clarify with a talk. What were they, what would they become...

Fred had said several times already that he did not want them to pretend anything so what was he expecting, she had to know.

...

It was already 7am, she had to get out of the room but she wanted to have that talk first. Her problem was how to move and how to wake up Fred. She closed her eyes and realized that moving was the answer.

She pushed his legs away from hers. It had been enough to awoken Fred.

With his eyes still closed and a smile on his face, he asked what time it was. Hermione saw it as a good sign. She answered his question. Fred opened his eyes and sat on his bed. Hermione imitated him, unsure about what to say next.

Fred smiled at her and asked her if she had slept well. She nodded and said that he did not snore or move. He laughed and said that George got all this.

He observed her for few seconds, she was biting her lips, sign that she was nervous. He touched her hand and asked her if she was ready to go downstairs.

« No, I am petrified what if they think that you know. » she started but Fred interrupted her

« And, what did I already tell you about people's opinion. »

« They aren't just people, downstairs we have your family and my three best friends. I don't want anybody to get the wrong idea. » she argued

Arguing that with a comment like then you should not have stayed here would have been possible but Fred did not want to fight. He knew that she was not trying to make him feel bad or anything. She was just scared and he could understand why, he was nervous too. He had violated the rule number 3 of the burrow.

However, he, as usual, found the words to comfort Hermione.

...

« Fred why are you so nice to me. » she finally asked

« What kind of question is that one. Why not. » he said frowning

« Fred could you please just answer the damn question. » she said rising her voice

« No, not until you won't tell me what's wrong with you. » he answered sharply

She looked into his eyes, took a deep breath and ask him if he was nice just because he was feeling that he had a debt to pay or because she meant something special to him.

He cupped her neck, he had promised to himself to take his chance in case Hermione would send him any love sign. He was bloody sure that it was one and he was not going to miss another chance.

« Absolutely not. Hermione, I've never been happier than right now. You have doubts. I can understand but please trust me when I am saying that I will never hurt you .» he said sincerely

« I am sorry but I think that with Ron and your mother who are constantly reminding me that you could never possibly have any interest in me, that I could have a bet over my head, it » she paused still looking into his eyes

Fred decided that it was the perfect moment to tell her the truth.

« Hermione, at the wedding last year. I lied to you. »

She frowned and grabbed his wrists.

« You lied to me, what is that supposed to mean. » she said worriedly

« I love you was what I should have told you. I did not just fancy you. I was in love with you. I am not playing with you, never was and never will. Hermione, I »

He only had three more words to say but Hermione interrupted him right before he could finish his sentence.

« I loved you too Fred. » she whispered

She had not let him finished his sentence for multiple reasons. She was not a hundred percent sure about what his words would have been but no matter what they would been, she was not ready to hear them yet. She was scared, scared to start writting the most desired chapter of her life. Chapter that she had assumed would never existed.

She was scared because she did not want to have to write another chapter after the Fred's one. If she jumped in, Fred's chapter had to be the last one, it had to be for a lifetime even longer than, it had to be forever. But they were still so young and she did not want to sound crazy so she did not tell him anything else.

But unlike before, it did not stop Fred. He had waited for this moment for almost three years, he did not want to wait any longer.

...

His face came closer to hers, they were so close, too close. Hermione had even already started to count, to mark in her head, how long it would take for their lips to meet. This time she was positive, Fred was going to kiss her and she was not going to push him away, certainly not.

She closed her eyes as Fred was closing the distance between them. Their lips were still barely touching when a furious Arthur opened the door. Their lips had just met when Arthur had started to shout at them.

« Downstairs now. »

...

next chapter on sunday or monday. I was not sure about posting the FB but I have finally decided to keep it. I needed it to give a contrast with their past situation.


	28. Chapter 24

New chapter

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xx,

...

Their lips were barely touching when a furious Arthur opened the door. Their lips had just met when Arthur had started to shout at them.

« Downstairs now. »

Immediately, Fred and Hermione pulled apart. Fred raised his gaze and glared at his father but the death stare that his father sent him made him look away.

He certainly was in big trouble. He just hoped that his parents would not be too harsh on Hermione, he did not want her to have another talk with his mother. He did not want her to leave.

He did not care that much about his lot though. He was twenty years old and he was only staying at the burrow because his mother had insisted on having him at home during his rest time.

It was true that the situation was becoming a bit more dramatic day after day and that Fred was not a huge fan of dramas, dramas were associated with Ron, besides he had not done anything wrong.

This all situation was insane and everything had started because of Hermione and what she had done to save him but since she had saved his life, he was ready to take the blame for something that he had not done, at least for a couple of weeks more. After that he hoped that Hermione would be his official girlfriend so he would be blamed for something that he would have really done.

...

Arthur was still glaring at his son and Hermione.

« Hermione, we have to leave in 30min. Get out of the room and go get ready please. Fred downstairs now. » Arthur managed to say calmly though his fists were clenched.

« I have to. » started Fred who wanted to change before to go downstairs.

He could not go to St Mungo in jeans, he had to change but that was one little detail for his father. A detail that his father did not care about.

« I said now. » shouted Arthur

Arthur did not have to say it again, Fred was already walking towards the door and Hermione had already run to the bathroom, probably to lock herself in for the next 30 minutes.

...

Fred passed in front of his father without looking at him, he did not dare to do such thing. He had rarely seen his father so angry. Last time he had seen him so angry, it had been when Arthur had learnt that he and George had dropped out of Hogwarts.

...

Arthur followed his son and before Fred could reach the last stairs, he firmly grabbed his son's shoulders

« Do you remember the rules of this house or should I refresh your memory. » scolded the patriarch

« Nothing happened Dad.» claimed Fred yelling.

Fred, who, did not care if the all village had heard him

« I don't believe you, not after what I've just seen. Fred, Hermione had spent the entire with you and you want to make me believe that you had just slept like kids do. » argued Arthur

He raised his index to make understand Fred that he could not talk yet.

« Look Fred, you are both adults but I have never tolerated anything like that under my roof and I, certainly, won't change my mind about that rule. And less for you two. For God's sake, you aren't even dating. »

Fred repeated that nothing did happen. Arthur rolled his eyes.

« Fred, correct me if I am wrong but no latter than yesterday you were still claiming, both of you that there was nothing more than friendship between you two, since when do friends kiss, tell me. » with his hands on his hips, he looked like his wife when she was angry

Fred was looking at his father but he could not answer his question as he had no idea what this kiss had meant or if it was going to change something between him and Hermione.

Arthur sighed deeply. He was so annoyed by his son' silence. He tried again to get an answer from Fred but Fred did not give him any.

« Fred, this had been the first and last time that Hermione had spent the night with you under my roof, understood. » said Arthur sternly

« You know what Dad, go tell that to Ginny and Harry, they are spending their nights in Percy's bed. But he is Super Boy and she is the little girl of the family so everybody acts as if nothing is happening there. » replied Fred angrily

« This is different and you totally now why besides they are dating. But thanks for the information, I did not know that they are _sleeping_ in Percy's room. I am going to have a talk with both and inform your mother, of course. » said Arthur oddly, he was shocked. His little daughter, no, no, he did not want to think about it.

...

As Fred was reaching the next stair, Arthur caught his right arm.

« I am not done yet, do not move. Fred, I formally forbid you to drag Hermione into one of your game. If she gets pregnant, you marry her Fred, do you understand. »

« Nothing happened. We just slept.» snapped Fred

« Fred, are we clear. » insisted Arthur who was still glaring at his son

« Yes, yes I will marry her if she gets pregnant, satisfied. Can I just go downstairs now, I would like to eat something before to go to St Mungo. » said Fred exasperated

Without waiting for an answer he ran downstairs. He was thinking that his parents were still living in the 18th century and that for people, supposedly, so open minded, they were, indeed, very narrow minded with a lot of prejudices.

What hurt Fred the most was the fact that it really looked like his father, just like his mother and Ron and probably more, did not believe, even for a second, that he could be really in love with Hermione.

He knew that he had messed up with Sophie but Sophie was not the perfect American little witch that they all thought she was. Sophie had accepted his rules. She was as responsible as he was but when she had realized that Fred could not love her, she had exposed him as the bad one, just like Ron was doing with Hermione since the end of the war.

...

Once in the kitchen, he sat next to George but did not talk to him. Fortunately Harry, Ron and Charlie were already gone so he just had to avoid George, Ginny and his mother's eyes and questions.

Just like he had thought, Hermione only appeared after Arthur had called her several times to tell her that they had to leave or they would be late.

She ran into the chimney without looking at the kitchen.

Molly looked at Fred, the empty chimney and shooked her head. Browned off by this situation, she did know what to do. Ron, for sure, was not going to look for another feud but she feared more a relationship between Fred and Hermione than a summer of fights between her sons and the young witch.

...

...

Hermione had a look at her watch, it was almost noon and she was finally done with the artifacts from the 18th century. Of course, she still had the ones from the 19th century and a lot of objects that she would have to identify before to know to which century they belonged but she still had 8 weeks to figure out all this.

She closed the door and left the department of mysteries where the artifacts had been moved during the war for a, still, unknown reason. She could not stop thinking that this was really odd, they were just dusty old objects, nothing was mysterious about them.

She was walking fast, she wanted to get back to the burrow as soon as possible, she was feeling awful for not standing up next to Fred and she wanted to apologize but she, finally, decided to stop by Kingsley's office first. There was something that she wanted to ask.

...

She knocked at the door and waited for Kingsley to pronounce a formal coming before to open the door of the Minister's office. She had been in there before but the feeling was different, this was Kingsley, a friend somehow, maybe not a friend but an ally that was for sure.

He greeted her with a big smile. She did the same but it faded when she saw, on his desk, a box full of time turners. Percy had told her that Pr McGonagall had to bring hers and Hermione could not help but wondering what Pr McGonagall had brought since she was the one in possession of the time turner.

Kingsley caught her gaze and he told her that they had found no less than three time turners at Malfoy's manor and another one into the Lestranges' vault. It did not surprise Hermione. Kingsley added that he was very worried as dangerous Death Eaters were still on the run, Rodolphus Lestrange included.

« Do you think that they might be looking for one. » asked Hermione worriedly

« Definitely, maybe they've got one already. Minerva can't find hers. You had been the last witch registered in its possession but you had returned it at the end of June 1994, after you Dumbledore had locked the time turner in his office but Minerva had taken it back after his death so it is unlikely that Severus had been in its possession. Minerva believes that it might had been taken during the battle of Hogwarts but it's been almost a month. If they had taken it, then what are they waiting for to change time. Something just doesn't make sense. I don't know what to think. We are missing something here, I am convinced. » affirmed Kingsley, his eyes fixing the little magical objects.

Hermione nodded, what else could she do. She could not tell Kingsley the truth, he was an ally but he was also the Minister and no matter what Fred had told her, she was sure that Kingsley would not let her act unpunished.

...

The more Kingsley was talking, the more she was starting to think that he was suspecting her. But how could he, it did not make any sense. Her hands were sweaty so she digged them into her dark blue jeans' pockets and tried to think about something else though it was very hard as she could feel the cold time turner against her breast.

She really had to find a book about time turner and travelling through time. Perhaps Fred and George had one in one of those trunks.

...

Kingsley asked her if she was ok. She nodded but he insisted and asked again.

« Yes, I am fine, why are you asking. » she asked suspiciously.

She was mentally blaming herself for having decided to stop by Kingsley's office. It had been a mistake.

« Arthur was mumbling this morning when I ran into him. He was kind of furious about you know, you and Fred. » said Kingsley while he was siting on the corner of his desk, next to where Hermione was standing.

« He told you. » said Hermione awkwardly

Actually, she was relived as Kingsley' suspicious attitude was probably related to the fact that she had spent the night with Fred. Not that she really understood why Kingsley seemed so concerned but in that moment everything that could lead the conversation away from the time turner was welcomed.

« Hermione, you are a big girl and you are smart. You can do whatever you want, I am no one to judge but you should be careful. »

« Because of Fred. Why does everybody think that he is playing with me, it is very confusing. I do want to believe him but I don't know if I should. Except Andromeda, everybody is scaring me » she said annoyingly

« Hermione, I am telling you to be careful not because of Fred but because oh, never mind just forget it, it is none of my business. I am going to Andromeda's for lunch, do you want to come. » he said cheerfully

She shooked her head and said that she wanted to go back to the burrow as soon as possible. She explained him why and when Kingsley asked her if she was in love with Fred, she answered positively but made him promise to keep her secret. He sweared to do not tell a word.

« Andromeda knows but no else does. I have to figure out a lot before to share the big news. » affirmed Hermione

« I am going to give you a piece of advice, from my own experience. Hermione, talk to Fred even if you think that it is too soon. Many years ago, I lost the woman of my dreams because of unsaid things, I thought that it could wait until I fixed some stuff but when I had fixed those things the woman that I loved was with another man and it was too late for me. She has got a life, a family and the closest things that I've got from that are the kids' products that I have to test before to let Fred and George sell them at the shop » he said sadly

« Andromeda is also encouraging me to talk to Fred but it is easy to say, not easy to do. » replied Hermione who did not know what to answer.

She would have never expected a personal confession from Kingsley shacklebolt. Something popped into her mind. She observed him intensely for few seconds, wondering if her thought made sense, it did and it made her smile.

...

Kingsley's deep voice brought her back to reality.

« You do have chosen someone special but you are very special too so I guess that it makes sense. Remus believed that Fred was very much in love with you. He had grown close to the twins after you three were gone. So you should take the plunge. » he said with a smile and then he added chuckling

« If you two have kids one day, Minerva will retire before their first year for sure, with the rest of the Hogwarts teachers who have known you of course. I would definitely retire far away from curly redheads with an intelligence above the average, mischievous ideas and of course a talent for trouble. »

« We aren't anywhere near to curly redheads yet, I am afraid. But thanks for your words. By the way, I did not come to see you to talk about Fred. » replied Hermione who had not laughed. She was picturing those curly redheads and it had given her something to think about.

Kingsley nodded and stopped laughing.

« Yeah, I had guessed that one. Aurors are still looking Hermione. Your parents had definitely been in Australia but since Easter, they are no more traces of them. They rent a car, road trip apparently, one of those things that Muggles like but they never returned it, the car had not been found. » explained Kingsley worriedly

« Do you think. »

« I am going to find them. I made a promise to you, I will find them. » assured the Minister

« What about my house. »

« I had been there, looks ok but I cannot let you go just yet. We've caught Greyback and we've spotted Yaxley, he should be arrested today. Audrey, Alicia and Charlie are after him. He had been separated from Dolohov, Rookwood and Lestrange after their last encounter with the Aurors but as long as those three are gonna be running around, it is too dangerous. If you need a cosy and quiet place for, you know, I would choose another place. I am sure that Fred must know countless well protected hidden places. » said Kingsley cheerfully

Hermione turned crimson and looked away. Kingsley did not seem to think like they had committed a crime but the fact that people so easily assumed that she was having sex with Fred under the Weasleys roof, with the Weasleys in there, was upsetting her a lot.

She smiled though, thanked him for the informations about her parents and said goodbye.

...

She left the Minister's office, upset, sad and awkward. She needed her mother so badly. Fred could not resolve all her doubts, he was a man, she needed a woman.

Next day was Saturday, she would have to pay another visit to Andromeda, the only woman to whom she was feeling confident enough to bring a particular subject.

Also, she was worried about the time turner. It was very unlikely that Dumbledore had told Pr McGonagall about what she had done. So she could not directly return it to Pr McGonagall.

She had two options, keeping it until she would find a safe way to destroy it. Time turner were very strange objects, their magic was very powerful and it was not easy to destroy them. Or she could simply let it where she had found it so Pr McGonagall could bring it to the Ministry but this option was extremely dangerous as Percy had told her that they were going to check when was the last time that each time turner had been used.

She definitely needed a book about time turners but she had never heard about one, not even Dumbledore had one in his private collection.  
There certainly was a book or two at the Ministry and the books certainly were at the department of Mysteries but looking for them while she was supposed to study and identify dusty Muggle's objects was not a fine idea. She did not want to draw people's attention.

...

...

When Hermione arrived to the burrow, Molly was eating, alone, in the kitchen. Fred's plate was full and so was his glass of water. Hermione could easily guessed that they had a fight as Fred's chair was too far away from the table to have been pushed gently.

She walked towards the table, she sat in the chair next to Fred's. The one in front of Molly's. She greeted Mrs Weasley with no fear in her voice. Mr and Mrs Weasley were not her parents and she had not done anything wrong.

Molly greeted Hermione and served her a full plate of shepherds pie. Hermione was waiting for the nasty comments but none came so she started to eat in silence. She could hear noises upstairs, she cleared her throat and asked where Fred was.

« Upstairs. No, you stay here and finish your plate. » snapped Molly

« Nothing happened Mrs Weasley. I swear. » attempted Hermione gently

« Just like you sweared that you no longer had feelings for Fred. » said Molly glaring at Hermione

« I was in deny Mrs Weasley. I did not lie to you intentionally. Did something happen before I arrived. » asked Hermione worriedly

« That is none of your business Hermione. Now eat. » ordered the Matriarch

...

Hermione heard Fred's footsteps on the stairs. Fred crossed the kitchen without looking at them and left the house, slamming the door behind him. Hermione's eyes met Molly's but it did not stop her. She pushed her chair away and ran after Fred.

...

His long legs and his anger were making him walk faster than ever. He was walking so fast that Hermione had to run, literally run behind him. She was telling him to stop but he was not listening, the more she was talking to him, the faster he was walking.

Annoyed by his attitude, she yelled at him before to reach the road that led to the village.

Fred, surprised by her voice's tone, stopped and turned over to face her. Her cheeks were red after her run and she was breathing heavily but she was still beautiful for him.  
She asked him what had happened. He eluded the question at first but she insisted adding that she was not going to go back to the burrow before to have got an answer, that she was not going to leave him alone and that she did not care about his parents' opinion.

« It did not look like that this morning Hermione. » said Fred irritated

She apologized for locking herself into the bathroom. She said that it had been the last time and said that she would always stand next to him in the future. She said always and forever and once Fred had heard those two words, he seemed to lighten up a bit.

« Fred, please talk to me. I am ready to open my heart to you, I really am but I need to feel that you are doing the same thing. Don't shut me out and if you want to know something about me just ask me. » she told him seriously

Fred cupped her neck, bent down a bit and told her that he was not shutting her out. He explained her that he was just really upset because everybody was thinking that he was playing with her.

« I know, it is really annoying and destabilizing, specially for me but Fred, you are the one who told me to do not care about people's opinion, please don't let their opinions affect you, us. »she begged him

« I am trying but Hermione, what are we. »

...

next chapter will be on friday. We are coming to the next arc with the Death Eaters, time turner and the Ministry, I needed Fred and Hermione to be strong enough to deal with all that, together and I hope that you are going to enjoy this storyline.


	29. Chapter 25

New chapter.

I am sorry for the delay but I do travel quite often, for my job, and I, sometimes, just don't have a very good internet connection or enough time to post.  
Also, I do need a beta asap or I won't be able to post often until Christmas as I have a quite busy agenda until the 15th of december. Beta will have the chance to read all the chapters in advance and also some chapters that I might not post like the M rated ones, so it is all bonus, isn't it? Only one chapter per week.

please DM if you are interested, just it has to be a native english speaker.

...

Hikiri welcome :)

Miriallia10 welcome :)

Nildariellasan welcome :)

Lost O'Fallon Girl welcome :)

wyattsmom2009 welcome :)

and finally Sabcal welcome :)

xx,

...

« I am trying but Hermione, what are we. » asked Fred seriously

He needed her to pronounce some words like couple, boyfriend or girlfriend but she did not. However, her answer opened doors.

« Whatever you want us to be Fred. » she said smiling

Fred smiled, a weak smile. He would have to try again, soon. He would have to try harder but at least it looked like they were on the same page, it looked like, he was not even sure.  
He cleared his throat and told Hermione that he wanted them to be Fred and Hermione. He had believed that she would have liked this answer but as soon as she had started to giggle, he had started to doubt.

They needed to improve their communication, both knew it.

...

Hermione placed her hands on his shoulders and replied, amused, that this was not an answer. Fred removed his hands from her neck, he lowered them along her back and let them rest in her lower back, above her pink tracksuit jacket of course. He did not dare to touch her skin.

He pulled her closer and smiled at her.

« I think that we should take this slow, learn to know each other, who we have become and go from there, just to be sure you know that we are on the same page.» insisted Fred who still had few doubts about what Hermione really wanted, if she knew what she really wanted, of course.

A bit disconcerted she agreed, she had thought that Fred would ask her to become his girlfriend right away but she reckoned that he was right. Fred gave her a peck, it was not a real kiss but it had been enough to comfort her. She wanted a real kiss but she also wanted it to be perfect so she told herself that she would have to wait a bit for it.

Nevertheless, she had to admit that in less than twenty four hours they had made a huge progress and even though it was hard to accept it, they could thank Ron for that. If it had not been for his excessive paranoia, they would still be pussyfooting.

...

« Hermione, I've waited a very long time, I want you, I really do but I am scared of you. » confessed Fred

Hermione frowned, she did not like his last sentence, neither did she like his tone. He chuckled and told her that he just did not want her to realize one day that she was not in love with him. He insisted, firmly, that she had to stop thinking that their story could have been better in 1996. It annoyed her, Fred was not getting her point.

« Fred, this is not what I am doing. But 1996 is the last year that had been a good one for me, well until june at least and I am trying not to but a part of me can't stop thinking that if we had been braver, everything would have been different. » she replied as gently as she could

« What would have been different. » he asked raising an eyebrow

Perhaps the best way to help Hermione to get over 1996, was to understand while she was so fond of that year and what she believed that could have happened during that year. After all, it was true that this year had been the year of the changes for the all wizarding community, from joy to fears, from peace to war...

...

Hermione bit her lips, she was nervous. She had been waiting for Fred to ask her why 1996 was so important for her, she was ready to tell him but she did not want to confuse him more.

« First of all, you leaving school, would you have dropped school if we had been together, I need to know» she asked boldly

« Yes though I can't be sure. If we had been together, I can certify that we would have left » answered Fred honnestly

Visibly satisfied Hermione pursued.

« Second, the department of mysteries. Fred, if we had been together, I don't know but a part of me believes that you would have come and. »

« And Sirius would have died and I would have punched Super Boy for dragging you there but I got your point, go on, I want to get your complete point of view. » said Fred who had not want to be impolite but he had to stop her from thinking that their love story would have save people's life.

He was rather shocked, Hermione usually did not believe in and they lived happily ever after. She was a rational person, too rational most of the time but after what she had lived, Fred assumed that she needed a bit of fairy's dust to feel better.

« Summer 1996, I would have spent it with you instead of mourning all summer because of you. » she continued, her cheeks had turned pink though

« Same here. » quickly replied Fred who could easily imagined what she had in mind for that summer.

After all, he had invented the patented daydream charms that summer... A new way to dream of her...

...

She took a deep breath and chase away the images of that forever lost perfect summer.

« I would have never thought that Ron could be right for me. I would have spent my sixth year happy until Dumbledore's death and then I know that I would not have been able to keep my mouth closed about our mission. I would have told you everything. »

« Would you have let me and George go with you. » asked Fred dubiously

« No, Harry would not have let you but Fred, I would have had something to return to, I would have had try to think better, harder and I am sure that I would have succeeded. » she affirmed

She looked so convinced, Fred was very surprised. She had not lied about her feelings, Fred knew that he could no longer have doubts about her feelings. Joy invaded him until he remembered the wall.

« But the battle of Hogwarts would have happened anyway. » said Fred sadly.

He had got her point, she had imagined a perfect love story that would have saved them all. It was so unlike her and Fred could not just agree with everything.  
He could picture them together just like she had just described but apart from their love story, he still believed that everything would have been the same and actually he was quite sure that Hermione would have tried to break up with him before to leave just like Harry had done with Ginny.

It seemed that she had forgotten how discreets the trio had been before to leave, how they had made their best to push people away, to do not reveal anything about their plans. Fred was ready to bet that they would have spent the last weeks arguing before to probably break up. But she affirmed that she would have never broken up with him.

« I would have been happier Fred. I had forgotten what happiness meant until you awoken, then I saw your smile and I remembered what happiness feels like but still I will never experience this sort of happiness. It should have been the happiest year of my life.» finished Hermione

Astonished Fred frowned and stated.

« You can be happy Hermione. Today can be better than yesterday and tomorrow can be better than today, if you just give us a real chance. I know that you had been through a lot. I don't want to rush anything, so let's take this slow. I am going to show you that everything is going to be better than what you had in mind, ok.» he said smiling

She agreed with a smile. She was standing on tip-toe, she had managed to drag herself high enough to kiss Fred, another small kiss but Fred was so tall, it was not easy for her but she would learn how to deal with Fred's 6.3ft and how to kiss him properly.

...

...

They went to the local bar of the village. Fred told her that he knew Randall the owner and that on friday there was mac&cheese on the menu. He said that this mac&cheese was the best that he had ever eaten.

Randall was as tall as Fred. He had long grey hair, a quite long white beard and deep blue eyes. He, for Hermione, looked a bit like a young version of Dumbledore though he was wearing a plaid red shirt and old black trousers instead of a long robe.

He greeted Hermione and Fred warmly. Fred said that they needed a quiet table for two and Randall gave them a table away from the entrance but unfortunately close to the loo so they would have to deal with a lot of back and forth. Randall apologized but Fred said that it was fine.

...

Hermione looked around and noticed that it was indeed the only spot that was far enough from the other tables and the bar. She looked around, the place looked a bit like the three broomsticks except that it was full of muggles, with a big screen on the wall, with a football game broadcasting, a darts game and a billard. Certainly, Muggle's bar were not very different from the Wizard's ones.

She smiled, she liked the fact that Fred had no problem to frequent Muggle's places like this one and that he knew how to fade into the background, it was something that she would have never been able to do with Krum or Ron.

...

She enjoyed the food, Fred was right, she had never had a better mac&cheese in her life. It had even beat the one of her grandmother's. She looked into his hazel eyes and without thinking she told him what she had not been able to before like how Bellatrix had tortured her, Godric's Hallow, the Peverells. She also told him about the time turner's hunt, how worried she was, how she had thought that Kingsley was suspecting her...

She wanted to share everything with him. Her mother had always told her that secrets were the couple's worst enemy. And since they already had a lot of enemies, it was not necessary to add any...

It was also a good way to ameliorate their communication.

...

« You know even if the morons have a time turner or even if they are chasing McGonagall's one, how are they going to change the issue of the battle. They did not know why and how Harry had defeated Voldemort and this is something that they cannot change because Voldemort did not know that Harry was indeed the real owner of the Elder Wand and they cannot find out, even if they go back on time a hundred time. They don't know anything about the Horcruxes either, they are clueless » affirmed Fred

« Perhaps but I am scared, what if they find a way. »

Fred refuted her theory. The battle of Hogwarts had been on the 2nd of May, they were almost in June, waiting a month was not a very Death Eaters' attitude. Why would they wait if they had one, it did not make any sense.  
Fred insisted, again, on his theory that with or without a time turner, Death Eaters knew that they would not be able to change time and since they could not kill Harry, going back on time was a waste of time and he was ready to bet that even the Death Eaters knew that it would be a waste of time. Fred believed that they probably wanted to get revenge, to rally people to their cause but most of all, he believed that the three morons were probably just trying to save their arses from Azkaban.

Hermione had no choice but to agree though a part of her was still thinking that they wanted McGonagall's time turner and that they might be after her. Rookwood could have seen her, just like Percy and Fred had.  
She could not say why but it was her sensation, Rookwood had seen her too.

They were powerful wizards, perhaps they knew more than her about time turner. She was clueless and Fred did not know anything about time turner either. What if the Death Eaters knew how to modify time, what if they knew more than what she and Fred were thinking. Kingsley looked so worried...

It made her shivered however with Fred she was feeling so safe that the fears rapidly vanished away.

...

She finished her plate and changed the subject. Speaking about all this was too depressing, besides Fred was certainly right and the Death Eaters were probably just trying to escape from a one way ticket to Azkaban.

She asked him if he knew how to play darts. He genuinely said that he was not playing often.

...

After loosing for the sixth time in a row, a suspicious Hermione looked at Fred and asked him why he had lied to her.

« You said that you did not know how to play. » she argued

« No, I said that I do not play often, it is not the same thing. You should be more careful. » teased Fred

She punched his shoulder which made him laugh. When he asked her if she wanted another round, she stuck her tongue out at him, he laughed until a young attractive man with short brown hair and blue eyes stood up and said that he wanted to try his chance.

Fred, dubious, look at the young man and finally accepted his challenge. He could not chickened out in front of Hermione moreover what did he have to loose, nothing, not even his pride.

« Good, my name is Joe. I am new in town. »

« I am Fred and I am not new. Ready. » rushed Fred who had no interest on befriending Joe. He was having a wonderful time with Hermione and this guy had just ruined the mood.

« Yes, I am ready but what do the winner win. » asked Joe while he was ogling at Hermione

« What do you propose. » asked Fred who was trying to stay calm.

He had no reason to be jealous and he must not acted as if he was, Hermione hated jealousy. On her top 10 reasons about why Ron could not be her Mr Right, jealousy was third.

...

Joe asked Fred if Hermione was his girlfriend. Unsure, Fred shocked his head. His eyes met Hermione's and he read deception in her gaze.

However, Joe was smiling and said that the winner would win a date with Hermione. He asked Hermione if she was fine with it, she nodded as she was still looking into Fred's eyes. Her gaze was now saying win for me and he did. Twenty minutes later Fred had won.

Joe shook Fred's hand and told him that he was very lucky to have such a lovely girlfriend. Fred passed an arm around Hermione' shoulders and smiled.

« Indeed. » said Fred while Hermione was turning pink though the grin on her face could not be wider

...

...

Fred and Hermione were about to leave, it was getting late and they knew that Molly and Arthur were probably waiting for them. Once they were out of the bar, Fred took Hermione's hand in his and smiled.

« Looks like you owe me a date Hermione. Sunday, 8pm once everybody will have gone to the Order's meeting and no, you don't have to go. You aren't a proper member of the Order, you have never signed any paper and I have to rest so I cannot go, so 8pm. »

« Did you have this planned before, before all this. » she asked, gladly, taken aback by his proposal

« No, that guy, Joe had given me an idea and I think that a date goes well with the take it slow formula that we've agreed on. » explained Fred

« Where are you going to take me. » she asked nervously

She wanted to get some useful information so she could prepare herself better for this first date, not just her first date with Fred but her first date in general.

She was already feeling nervous but in a good way. She was excited but she really needed to talk with Andromeda and Ginny too. She had an idea about Muggle's dates but maybe Wizards' were different, maybe there was something important that she had to know.  
She did not want to be unprepared, she had to know what she was allowed to do and to do not do on a first date.

Also, she had read something about dating on Cosmopolitan. She had bought the May issue when Fred was still at the hospital, she had kept it because of its column about hair care but the 10 rules to follow on your first date's article might be even more useful than this one.

...

« I am not telling you but you will have to wear a dress, an elegant one and do not forget your wand. » teased Fred

« Are we gonna be in trouble. » she asked confused

She bit her lips, she did not have a dress and what did Fred mean by elegant anyway. She was trying to read his mind but she did not know how to properly do it.

Fred smirked but did not reply to her question, instead of that he gave a peck on the cheek, very close to the lips and said that they had to go back to the burrow while Hermione was adding to go shopping to her list of things to do with Andromeda and Ginny.

...

Next time during the weekend, Sunday


	30. Chapter 26 part I

New chapter

I have now Betas :)

For this chapter, lovely Smileyk helped, thanks again.

Laurenmk20 welcome :)

cares 1970 welcome :)

Delphine Andress-Finck welcome :)

anonymousvoice welcome :)

and finally lauren. 1 welcome :)

xx

...

Luckily, when they arrived at the Burrow, it was crowded. Lee and Katie had come home with George. Dean and Alicia were there too. They were all having a glass of fire whiskey and they all seemed rather festive. Hermione and Fred were looking at each other's, both wondering what was going on.

...

...

A bit tipsy, Charlie hugged them as soon as they stepped into the kitchen and told them that Harry and Ron had caught Yaxley about two hours ago. He explained them that he was with Audrey and Alicia, looking for Yaxley when they had got a patronus from Kingsley to inform them that they had to go back to the Ministry immediately.

Charlie let himself fall on one of the chair and added that Kingsley was still interrogating the Death Eater with Percy, Audrey and their father. While refilling his glass, he said that they had to celebrate Harry and Ron's catch and that they had not wanted to wait until the end of the interrogation.

Fred winked at Hermione and bent down to whisper into her ear.

« See I told you that you had nothing to worry about. »

She smiled at him even if she had never cared about Yaxley. She was worried about Dolohov, Rookwood and Lestrange but still she walked towards the chimney where Harry, Ginny and Ron where and she hugged her best friends tightly.

She told them that she was proud of them and a smile lit up the faces of the two young men.

...

They talked a bit, just the three of them. It even looked like Ron had forgotten what he had said a couple of days ago, the fire whiskey was certainly helping.

An odd feeling invaded Hermione. For the first time since the Chamber of Secrets, they had achieved something without her but unlike then, she did not have the feeling to have missed something. When she had said that she wanted to live her own life, she had really meant it. She did realize that she was missing her friends, a lot, however, she was not going to change her mind and joined the aurors. She had something better to fight for, Fred, her life and her happiness.

...

When Ginny and Dean joined the conversation, Hermione started to look around. She spotted Fred, he was still in the kitchen, laughing and joking with his brother, Lee, Katie and Alicia. With a heartache, she observed Fred and his friends, wondering if she could fit in his world, his all world. Fred caught her gaze and waved at her.

She excused herself and left her friends to join Fred and his friends. Ginny and Harry smiled but Ron scowled at his older brother.

...

Once Hermione was close enough, Fred grabbed her hands and asked her if she was ok. She answered positively, he smiled and kissed her forehead. Many noticed, some glaring, some with their eyes wide opened and some like Ginny and Charlie had a big smile on their face.

...

...

Without Angelina around, the leader, Katie and Alicia seemed to be a bit nicer. Hermione talked with them for a bit but she could feel that they were still seeing her as Hogwarts' bookworm and that they were not understanding what Fred was seeing in her. Katie made a bigger effort but still after few minutes, Hermione had been, unintentionally maybe, maybe not, excluded from the girls' talk.

She tried to join the boys' conversation but she did not catch most of their jokes. She looked for her friends but unfortunately for her, the Patil's twins and Lavender Brown had arrived, Ron had probably invited them.

For few seconds, she thought that she was going to cry. She did not know where she belonged. Being with Fred also meant hanging out with his friends but unlike him, she was not friends with his friends and saying that they not really appreciated her was an understatement. They tolerated her but that was all. If she caught them alone, Lee and Katie were nice but only when she spotted them alone, with or without the twins. Alicia was nice only when the twins were around and Angelina had not been nice to her since she had broken up with Fred.

...

...

Hermione was surrounded by people but she was feeling incredibly lonely. She excused herself and went upstairs. Fred tried to follow her but George stopped him.

« Fred, come on, you've just spent the entire afternoon with her. Did you glue yourself to her arse or what. » mocked George though he was not joking. Actually, he was angry.

« He is right man, I stopped by twice this week and each time your mother said that you were out with Granger. What the hell is going with you. Was Angie right when she said that you had a big, big, big crush on the bookworm. » asked a confused Lee

« Her name is Hermione, Lee. And I've told you a hundred time to do not use any sweet name when I am around and the answer is yes, I liked her and I still do. » answered Fred who was bothered by his best friend comment

« Are you two together. Angie is going to freak out. » asked Alicia rudely

« She can think whatever the hell she wants. » snapped Fred

George looked at his twin and asked Fred to answer Alicia's question. Fred did not know what was wrong with his twin, he would have to talk to him later.

« We are getting to know each other, for now at least. » explained Fred who was awkwardly looking at his friends, just like his friends were looking at him worriedly, suspiciously, like if he was suffering from an unknown disease.

It suddenly hit him that his friends did not like the girl that he was in love with. In the past he would have cared but not in the present. He did not need their approval.

...

George was about to say something but Lee had been faster. Lee put his hands on Fred's shoulders and he gave him his blessing which surprised everybody.

« Bloody hell Fred, you've been after the girl for what two, three years now. Guys, this was not a secret to keep away from me, we are best pals. You better catch her for good Fred or I will kick your arse. You will have to explain us how come you Hogwarts' prankster had fallen for the bookworm though because I kind of need help to understand everything but if she makes you happy, then Hermione, it will be. And no more sweet names, I swear. » claimed Lee cheerfully

Katie giggled and also gave her blessing to Fred. Alicia did not but she was Angelina's best friend, Fred was not expecting her to make it easy for Hermione.

He was now waiting for his twin's blessing but George's face was twisted into a frown. It hurt Fred a bit, he did not need his friends' blessing but he needed George's.

Fred sighed and left his brother and friends. He was annoyed and did not want to ruin the festive mood.

...

He went upstairs and found Hermione reading trascendental magic, on her bed.

He stepped into the room, closed the door behind him and walked towards the bed.

Hermione's eyes were red, he sat next to her and asked her why she had been crying. She looked into his eyes and told him the truth. He said that he had feared something like that. He took the book from her hands and threw it on the bed.

« Once they are going to know you, they are going to love you. » certified Fred

« I would not be so sure if I were you. I highly doubt that Angelina is ever going to call me her friend and what about George. Does he hate me, why. » she asked sadly

This was bothering her so much. She liked George, she wanted to be his friend. Fred took her in his arms and she wrapped her arms around his neck, her head resting on his shoulders.

« He doesn't hate you. I had a rough time after leaving school, George is just worried. He doesn't believe that you do really like me. He mentioned many times, that he needed proofs. » said Fred comfortingly while he was stroking her back gently

...

A moment later while she was playing with the top button of Fred shirt, something crossed her mind.

« Tell him Fred. Tell him everything please. I don't want you and George to fight or to have a disagreement because of me. I would tell him myself but he won't believe me so it will have to be you, and take Percy as a witness. »

Fred asked her if she was sure and she nodded.

« You and I are never going to work without George's blessing and we both know it. » she said morosely

Fred did not want to admit out loud that she was right, so he just nodded. She gave him the time turner and he delicately placed it in his jeans' left pocket.

Without the necklace, Hermione felt nacked. She had been wearing it for a month. She had the feeling that it had become a part of her and somehow it was true.

...

They looked into each other's eyes for a moment, in silence. This closeness was still new for them and they did not really know how to behave yet. They were both thinking a lot, they both wanted to go further but none of them dared to turn their thoughts into actions.

Even if Fred was more experienced, he was not very keen mostly because he did not know what Hermione would accept or when she would tell him to stop and he did not want her to think that he was pressuring her though he was wondering how that would be possible as they had not even shared a real kiss yet but Hermione was still Hermione and it was not easy to anticipate her reactions.

He, however, pulled her closer and pressed his lips against her just like he had done on the morning and just like it did happen earlier someone interrupted them.

Fortunately it was just Ginny and she was smiling.

She had come to inform them that Percy and their father had returned and that dinner was about to be served. Fred and Hermione got the message and followed the youngest of the Weasleys downstairs.

...

...

Before to go to bed that night, Fred dragged Hermione into the bathroom and locked the door behind him. He told her that he had done some thinking and that he was ready to talk with George on the following day. Hermione replied that it was a good idea as she needed time to find a dress so she would not be around most of the day.

« I am missing you already, not seeing you until dinner, it is going to be hard. Be careful with the time turner, no one can see it. » warned Hermione who did not like the idea of Fred walking around with the magical necklace.

« I am going to miss you too Hermione but you were right we have to do this and I promise you that in 24 hours you will have your precious necklace back. » he answered smiling

Before he could unlock the door, Hermione grabbed his hands and red as a tomato she managed to haul herself high enough to kiss him on the lips.

Fred had not expected her to kiss him and before he could kiss her back, her lips were away from his but he had liked that she had taken the initiative. Perhaps he should be more keen, perhaps she was waiting for him to do something.

After their date, he would have to seriously talk to her about all this but only after their date, he did not want to ruin anything. He had waited way too long to take any risk, he had been waiting almost three years...

...

...

On the next morning Hermione went to see Andromeda. She had to find a dress for her date with Fred and she believed that Andromeda could be more helpful than Ginny. Ginny would try to make her buy a dress too short, too sexy, too Ginny and as less as possible like Hermione.

...

Andromeda was in the dining room, sat at the table, reading tea leaves and smoking something that was for sure not just tobacco. It was smelling like the wild flowers that the twins and Lee smoked. The blonde woman was still wearing her night gown and a teal dressing gown. She looked so displeased.

When Andromeda raised her gaze and saw the young witch, she automatically drowned her joint into her cup of tea and greeted Hermione warmly.

« Kreacher is upstairs with Teddy. He is trying to get him to sleep with elf's lullabies. I am not sure that it is going to work but we are a bit desperate. But you are here early, everything's alright. » asked Andromeda tiredly

Hermione nodded and summarized what had happened since her last visit a couple of days ago.

« Well I am gladly surprised that you and Fred are still alive after all this. I know the Weasleys, I know Molly, it is quite astonishing that she had not forced you to wear a chastity belt. You can raise you eyebrows Honey but there is a charm and it is as bad as an unbreakable vow, well almost. » explained Andromeda

« She is not my mother and I am eighteen not twelve. » retorted Hermione

« But for Molly it probably doesn't make a huge difference, sex before marriage is prohibited but as soon as you are married, you have to get pregnant. It is not her fault, she had been raised like that, me too by the way but I got pregnant during my last year of school so obviously all this chit chat did not sink deeply into my mind. » said Andromeda jokingly

« And people say that I am close minded. » sighed the young witch

« Nobody is perfect but back to our pumpkins, where is Fred taking you. »

Hermione said that she had no idea, that Fred had just told her to wear something classic and elegant.

...

...

They spent a long moment elaborating theories but none seemed to be very Fred Weasley.

« You know Honey maybe that's the point. It does not have to be something that he would do, he is taking you out, so he probably wants to please you. »

« We will see, I guess. » stated Hermione excitedly

« Are you nervous. »

« Not much actually. I am but I thought that I would be more. Is it good or bad. » she asked worriedly

Andromeda laughed, she had had a rough week and the presence of the young witch was helping her to feel better.

« In your case it is a good thing. So are you two officially together or what, I am a bit confused. »

Hermione shook her head and bit her lips

« Not quite close, I don't know what we are. We are getting to know the persons that we have become. Fred wants to take it slow »

Andromeda observed Hermione and asked her if this was bothering her. Hermione shrugged and said that she did not know. She blushed and admitted that she wanted more but she was not sure if she was ready yet for more. Andromeda told her that she could ask her whatever she wanted, blushing a bit more Hermione confessed that she had a lot of questions for later.

She was still worried about Andromeda and wanted to know why the older witch looked so upset, her questions could wait.

...

Andromeda waved her wand and a two clean cups appeared on the table. She filled them and told Hermione that Teddy's medical results were not good. Teddy was already showing symptoms of lycanthropy. The problem was that they had no way to find out before Teddy's third birthday, if he was going to turn into a complete werewolf each full moon like his father or if he was just going to turn from time to time or just be moody like Bill.

Hermione did not say that she had known that this would happen. Back to her third year, unlike most of her classmates, she had really done Snape's homework and she had studied werewolves from a to z. She tried to comfort Andromeda but it did not seem to work.

She could tell that there was something else and she asked Andromeda what was really bothering her. Andromeda chuckled.

« You really are the brightest witch of your generation. Truth is, I don't have money. There is a way to cure Teddy since he is a baby but the treatment is so expensive, I cannot afford it. At the moment, I do not even have a proper job. Death Eaters had destroyed my shop, I have nothing left. »

She added that she was trying to get money from her muggle insurance but that the company needed the death certificate of her husband and that at the moment Kingsley was trying his best to get it but he had not been successful yet. She had no job and she had almost no money left at Gringotts.

...

When Hermione asked about the Blacks' vaults, Andromeda laughed and said that years ago when she had left her house, her sister Bellatrix had made sure that she would never get a galleon.

« But Sirius, he had got his money. » pushed Hermione

« Sirius was James Potter's best friend, the Potters were rich and very, very respected, they had helped my cousin. I had no one. I was eighteen and pregnant when I left with my boyfriend, a muggle. I am the real dishonor of the family, Sirius was just a rebel teenager with a love for women and motorcycles. » sighed Andromeda

...

Andromeda also informed Hermione that Kingsley had offered her a job at the Ministry. He had offered her to become his secretary. He had told her that she could work from home most of the time so she could stay with Teddy. When she said that she had refused Kingsley's offer, Hermione asked why. She was surprised as Kingsley and Andromeda seemed to be really good friends. If she had been Andromeda, she would have accepted.

« I would not say that we are friends. Kingsley and I had history. » revealed Andromeda half amused, half upset

...

When Kingsley had told Hermione about the love of his life, how he had lost the woman that he loved, she had automatically thought about Andromeda. She was not a very empathetic person but she was a logical young woman and somehow in her head it just made sense. She could not explain it, she just knew.

She smiled, she had just got the confirmation that she had been right all along. Maybe, she was becoming more sensitive, more sympathetic, the idea pleased her. She knew that for many she was kind of cold-hearted and narrow minded.

She did not hide anything from Andromeda and let her know that Kingsley was still in love with her. She was positive, Andromeda was the woman and even if she knew that Andromeda had just lost her husband, daughter and son in law and that she was certainly not ready for a new relationship, Hermione hoped that someday Kingsley would see his deepest wish coming true.

Everybody deserved to love and to be loved, thanks to her love for Fred she was slowly understanding why Dumbledore, her mother and so many persons were always referring to love as the most powerful feeling.

...

Andromeda chuckled and replied that Kingsley had never lost the love of his life. She refilled her cup of tea before to tell more about her life to the young witch.

« I am afraid, I've never been the greatest love of his life. He might still have feelings for me but he has always loved his career more than me. I can assure that because if I had been his first choice, I would have probably become Mrs Shacklebolt. »

...

part II next saturday or sunday


	31. Chapter 26 part II

New chapter

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...

Andromeda chuckled and replied that Kingsley had never lost the love of his life. She refilled her cup of tea before to tell more about her life to the young witch.

« I am afraid, I've never been the greatest love of his life. He might still have feelings for me but he has always loved his career more than me. I can assure that because if I had been his first choice, I would have probably become Mrs Shacklebolt. »

Shocked Hermione asked for more details. Andromeda had piqued her curiosity.

...

...

Their conversation, quickly became very interesting. Hermione learnt that the Shacklebolts and the Blacks used to be neighbors in London, they had been living in Primrose Hill until the beginning of the first war.

Kingsley and his two older brothers used to be very good friends with the Black's sisters before the first war.

Kingsley's older brothers and his father were Aurors and they had been tortured to death by Voldemort himself in 1979. Back then, Kingsley was working in America, in Boston. He came back as soon as he had got the news, joined the Aurors and the Order of the Phoenix and sent his mother to France where she would be safe.

Hermione had no idea about all this. She did not even know that Kingsley had brothers or that they had fought in the first war. She did not even know that Kingsley was a Ravenclaw though it was the most logical house for the wise man.

She finished her cup of tea and sighed deeply several times. The problem with the war was that they had not taken the time to get to know the others.

They did not have enough time for formal presentations. They had become allies, not friends. They had been fighting together without knowing what was motivating the others to fight against Voldemort and his ideals.

Hermione realized that none of the members of the Order had been fighting just for Harry, just to protect them and somehow it was making her feeling better.

However, she was feeling bad for thinking that the world had been revolving around them. They definitely had taken too much for granted but Hermione promised herself to take time to get to know the members of the Order and their story. If they wanted to share it with her of course.

...

She sighed one more time and shared her perspective with the older witch. She continued saying that she did not know that Kingsley had been living in America. She asked Andromeda if he had left because of her.

Hermione really could not wait to know more about the two ex lovers. Andromeda's life was so epic.

« No, he left because he wanted to. I told you, his career has always been his first love. We kind of dated when we were teenagers, during our fifth year but he wanted to become Head Boy and to focus on his grades. Unfortunately, he had got few A so after getting our OWLS's results he broke up with me. » said Andromeda giggling though her gaze was sad

« Sounds a lot like someone I used to know.» blushed Hermione who could perfectly picture herself doing something like that.

She would have been quite capable to push people away, perhaps Fred was right and at some point she would have pushed him away. She was ambitious, it was a default and a quality at the same time. She had understood that she had to be careful or she might end up like Kingsley.

Andromeda took her hands and comforted her as she had read fears in Hermione's brown eyes.

Sometimes, they really had the feeling that their connection was as strong as the one that existed between a mother and a daughter and they both needed to feel this connection.

« I bet it does, that's why I am encouraging you to do not let escape another chance with Fred. »

Hermione nodded, the older which smiled and pursued.

« Well, Kingsley and I had different classes during our sixth year, I had a lot in common with Ted. I did not know him that much but we had been paired in herbology and care of magical creatures, we quickly became friends. He introduced me to a world that I did not know, the Muggles. He was fascinating me. »

Her blue eyes were shining, she had not shared her story with many persons, only few knew what had really happened and it was always making her feel melancholic.

« I slowly developed feelings for Ted and at the end of our sixth year, on your way back to London, he told me that he had feelings for me. We already had to hide our friendship because of my deranged sister and her friends, because of my parents so he told me that he was not expecting me to give him a chance as a lover. He kissed me on the lips and got out of the train» remembered Andromeda smiling

Hermione was observing her, curious to know more she asked Andromeda what she did after that kiss. Wistful, Andromeda told Hermione everything about her last year at Hogwarts.

« I spent the all summer 1972 thinking about Ted. We went on few dates, everything was so perfect, magical I dare to say but Kingsley came back from Durmstrang, students exchange existed back then, but let's skip that part for now. It was the middle of August and Kingsley had become a man there. Honey, he was bloody attractive and he was from my world. For few months, I had been torn, I did not know who to choose. »

She paused for few seconds to refill her cup and to choose her words.

« I was in love with Ted but I was scared. Kingsley was our neighbor, his family did not think like mine but they were a pure blood family, it was easier. I am no Gryffindor Hermione, I am not as brave as you and Harry are. » confessed Andromeda sheepishly

Perplexed, Hermione asked what that meant. For a brief moment, she wondered if Andromeda had chosen a path that she had not wanted but the older witch reassured her that it had not been the case.

« They did not pressure me, they gave me time to choose but in the end fate chose for us, all of us. Before the Christmas break, 1972, Kingsley told me that he was going to spend the next four weeks in America, Boston and Chicago to train with the Aurors. His father had got him the place and as usual he told me that he could not miss this chance, that it was the opportunity of his life, I knew the song too well.»

Hermione could tell that it was still painful for Andromeda, even if more than twenty five years had passed. Also her own resemblance with Kingsley was having the effect of an electroshock, she was sure that this was why Andromeda had decided to share her story with her, to warn her and it was working.

« I have never been the opportunity of his life, I was the girl next door, who would be there when he would come home. Kingsley was not the right man for me, I realized that when he gave me the news» Andromeda said dolefully

...

...

Even if Hermione knew that Andromeda had loved her husband, a part of her was still wondering what the 18 years old Andromeda had really wanted.

She did not want to annoy Andromeda with too many questions, neither did she want Andromeda to believe that she was sticking her nose in something that was none of her business so she just continued to listen, in silence.

«So I told him that I had finally chosen. I ran to my room, took my V card, wrote Ted's name on it, ran to the kitchen as I knew that their common room was there. I had to wait for an hour before a student let me in. I ran upstairs to Ted's room, his friends told me that he was training. He was the Quidditch captain. I went there, waited for the training to be over and you can guess what happened next. » Giggled Andromeda as she had noticed that Hermione's cheeks had turned pink

She had figured, a couple of weeks ago, that she should warn the young witch but it was not an easy subject to broach. She did not want Hermione to shut her away, after all Hermione was an adult and so was Fred.

...

When she had the sex talk with her own daughter it had been quite horrible but she could not take the risk to do not warn Hermione about the differences between wizards and muggles when it came to this particular subject.

When she was about her age, she wished that someone would have warned her about all the differences. Besides, she was quite sure that Fred did not know that much either. He had been raised by Molly and Molly like all the Blacks' descendants had probably never heard about most of those details.

Even if Arthur and Molly liked to deny it, they acted very much like the rest of the pure blood families. Their kids did not even know how to use a telephone...

...

They stared at each other's, in silence, for a couple of minutes. They were both in deep thoughts.

...

...

Hermione could not understand Andromeda's action. She was dubious, more than before. Andromeda had said that fate had chosen and from the outside it really looked like that so for the young witch the fact that Andromeda had run to Ted and lost her virginity that same day was not an act of love but an act of despair.

Andromeda tried to make clear that it had been an act of love as she had been waiting for a sign for months. She insisted on the fact that she had known all along that Ted was the one.

« But I was not brave enough to jump. I know how hard it is to understand for someone like you but Hermione, Bellatrix and Narcissa are my sisters, imagine how our parents were. You can not imagine what it is like to grow up in such a twisted family » sighed Andromeda

Hermione was feeling bad for Andromeda. Sirius had always told them that his family was the worst, as far as she knew, it really looked like Black's house was worst than hell. With people like them there would be a new Voldemort, one day, soon, too soon.

She wanted to fight for Muggleborn's rights, she wanted to fight for a better tomorrow but sometimes she was wondering if that was going to be achievable.

She looked into Andromeda's dark blue eyes, it gave her strengths. They had to fight, people should be free to choose whom to love, where to live...

She smiled and asked Andromeda to continue her story.

...

« I told Ted that I was in love with him, that Kingsley was just a friend and that I was ready to be with him. I swore that I was ready to fight for our love. After our love's confessions, we did it to seal our love. » admitted Andromeda who had blushed a bit

« He accepted you just like this. » asked Hermione frowning. She would not have been so nice.

« I gave him my V card Hermione, what could have been possibly better than that to prove him that I had chosen him. » claimed a surprised Andromeda

« I am afraid that I don't understand what you mean. » frowned Hermione. She was not getting the V card's part or Andromeda's enthusiasm.

Uncertain, Andromeda asked Hermione if she knew what she was talking about as the V card was part of the past of the pure blood families. As a Muggle born Hermione had no reason to have one unless of course she had very girly, too romantic and too old fashion girls in her year.

« We still do, Lavender gave me mine for my fifteenth birthday but still I don't see the point. It is just a card, isn't it.» answered Hermione dubiously

Andromeda gasped and very seriously replied that it was more than just a card. She did not know how to expound the powers of the V card, its history was so complex and full of myths...

...

Serious, she first told Hermione that it was very old magic. The V card had been used for centuries. It had been used to prove that the young witches were still virgen before their wedding.

Before the wedding, the parents of the witch had to give the card to the future spouse and his family. Once the wedding was arranged, the future spouse had to sign the card to mark the witch as his own.

« That's very old fashion, Lavender never told me this and what do you mean by his own. » replied Hermione who seemed very concerned.

Lavender highly disliked her, she knew it and she would not be surprised to learn that Lavender had just wanted to trap her into something twisted. She turned white when she heard the next sentence.

« After the deal is sealed, the name of the man is magically engraved into the witch' skin, groin, for a long time up to forever, it depends on the bond and the love between the wizard and the witch. »

« You have your husband's name engraved on your skin. » interrupted Hermione who was still deadly pale. It was too barbaric and too old school for her.

Andromeda nodded and as she could tell that she was speaking Chinese, she asked Hermione if she had any idea about the old customs of the wizarding society.

Hermione shook her head, no she had no bloody idea and she was definitely not enjoying the lesson. She was mentally cursing Mr Bean for rambling about the goblins' revolution instead of teaching them what was really important. She was cursing Lavender for giving her this bloody card and cursing herself for not looking for informations about it.

She desperately needed to know more. Fortunately for her, Andromeda knew a lot about the magical card and gladly shared her knowledge.

« The V card had been invented around 950 by Rowena Ravenclaw after Salazar Slytherin had told her that they needed to find a way to secure the descendants of the pure blood families. Common belief was that having intercourses with muggles was like a curse and that women would only produce squib after that, yes wizards could go fooling around, but that's no different from the muggles history, isn't it. »

Hermione agreed on this one. History had been hard on women.

« Thanks God almost nobody used it like this nowadays. Over the last centuries it has become a proof of love, kind of, as it does create a strong bond between the witch and the wizard. There are plenty of books on the subject and its legends if you are interested. As for how the cards are made, you just need to know the right enchantment, Mrs Brown does know it for sure so Lavender had probably asked her mother to make the cards»

« But how does that work, I mean where is the real magic beyond the scar and the legends. I don't get it.» replied a suspicious Hermione

« Well once you've written a name on your V card, you can not change the name, never, it is sealed forever and a wizard only can sign one V card so in the past, once it was signed from both spouses, the families were sure that the wedding was not going to be canceled. They did not have to worry about pre wed bastards either, even if men often had had intercourses but that was just a detail.»

Hermione raised an eyebrow, she was still not understanding where was the magic. It still seemed to be no more than an old card for her. Andromeda raised her hands and said that she was getting to the interesting point, the curse linked to the card.

« Rumors say that if you don't loose your virginity with the same wizard that you have written the name on your V card, you might die, loose your magic or produce only squibs, same if you give your card when you are no longer a virgin. Tales are the same when a wizard signs more than one V card, he condemns the witch but again it is part of the pure blood's history, I cannot tell you if it is true or not. » explained Andromeda piteously

« I have been raised in a very pro pure blood family, my sisters believe in those tales, I did too but after twenty five years apart from the pure blood's madness, I do not know what to believe. I do have the name of my husband engraved into my groin just like my sisters have the names of their husband, just like most of the women from my generation but it doesn't mean that everything else has to be true. I guess the best nowadays is for the young witches to loose their virginity without giving their V card. » assumed Andromeda

Hermione confirmed that she had no idea either however she was sure about something, Lavender Brown had given her V card to Ron and it had not reinforced their love, quite the contrary actually.

Andromeda clarified that the bond depended on the love between the witch and her lover. As Ron was not in love with Lavender, it had probably just reinforced his sexual desire, nothing else but she added that this desire would probably last forever when Lavender would be around and that Ron would never be able to fight it, it was part of the charm. In the past, it had been a smart strategy to reduce unfaithfulness and to procreate more.

Hermione was really relieved to do not have chosen Ron. As for what she had written on her own V card, giving the circumstances, it might be problematic. It was something else to add to the long list of things that she needed to clarify with Fred, a never ending list...

...

She finished her cup and chased the images of Fred away. She still had questions for Andromeda.

« So you gave it to Ted and then what happened, I mean after you did it. »

« Kingsley came back at the very end of the holidays, he caught me vomiting early on the morning. He understood quickly what was going on, I made him swear to do tell a word to anybody before I figured out how to tell the truth to my family. He offered to marry me and raised the kid so my family would not kicked me out but I told him that I was not scared of my family anymore, that I wanted to raise the baby with Ted, the man that I was in love with and who was in love with me. »

She sighed, she was almost done with the story of her early life. Hopefully Hermione would never reproduce any of their mistakes.

« You know how it ended for us as for Kingsley, he wished me luck, graduated from Hogwarts, top students from our promotion of course and left to Boston right after. » finished Andromeda with a weak smile

« Did you ever think about what you could have been. »

« No, never. I loved my husband, I still do and always will. I did not want to be someone second option. I did not want Kingsley to put his dream aside because of me either. Sooner or letter he would have regretted his choices. » she affirmed

She paused again and looked into Hermione's eyes. She wanted this conversation to sink deeply, she wanted to warn and advice the young witch at the same time.

« No matter what he told you, I know him and I would have never been enough for him, he needed more. True, he hasn't got a wife or a family but it has been his choice. You remind me of him, a lot, you know except for one thing, you love Fred more than Kingsley will ever loved me. What you did to save him, it has been an act of love and the spell that you had used is extremely powerful but without love, the spell is just useless. Your love for him saved his life, not your little trip and I glad that you are finally fighting for it» clarified Andromeda

Hermione bit her lips, love could be so tragic. She could see her old self in Kingsley but she had changed, the war, the hunt, the battle of Hogwarts had changed her forever. Everytime that she had thought that this was the end for her, the same regret had invaded her and this regret was not having loved and been properly loved.

Fate was giving her a new chance and she was determined to do not ruin this serendipitous opportunity., Andromeda had nothing to worry about on this field.

...

...

They spoke almost until lunch time. Their conversation could have seriously discouraged Hermione or made her think that her relationship with Fred would not work but it did not. Actually, it reinforced her desire to be with Fred and to become his partner, his second partner as George was already Fred's first partner.

...

She told Andromeda that she had written Fred's name on her V card when she was 16 and that she did not know how to tell him what she had done. Besides, she did not know anything about Fred's past experiences. He could have signed a card already and even if she refused to believe in what Andromeda had told her, a part of her was scared.

After all, she had refused to believe in the existence of the Deathly Hallows and it had been a huge mistake...

The older witch encouraged Hermione to be honest with Fred and promised to look into old books for a solution if Fred had already signed a card. She also reminded Hermione to be more careful about what she was doing, having top grades was totally different from knowing about the reality of the wizarding society and its traditions.

Hermione had definitely understood that magic did not mean logic and swore to be more careful. She had done enough for a lifetime already, going back on time, changing the past, using a forbidden ancient spell and writting Fred's name on a magical old card, that was definitely enough and all of this for Fred...

She really hoped that she was going to marry him one day, she deserved him, did not she.

And George who needed proofs, she had plenty...

...

They spent the afternoon out, it was warm and sunny, summer was definitely coming. They had taken Teddy with them and the little boy spent the afternoon sleeping in his puschair. They had found the dress, a cerulean silk dress, off shoulders, knees length with ruffles.

Andromeda had forced Hermione to buy some new clothes as well.

She had never seen Hermione wearing anything that was not a jean combined with a large jumper and her old grey converse and she was thinking that it was a pity as the young witch was hiding her woman's body.

Hermione bought a couple of summer dresses and even some crop tops that she knew Ginny would borrow.

And finally before to go back to Grimmauld Place, they stopped by Diagon Alley. Hermione wanted to get a new wand, she could not stand the idea of using Bellatrix's one any longer.

Mr Ollivander told her that she would have her new wand ready in a couple of days and Hermione left happy and relieved.

...

She returned to the Burrow after supper, Andromeda had insisted and she just could not say no to the lady moreover Kreacher was a very good Chief.

Again Fred locked her into the bathroom, it was the only room where they could have a bit of privacy.

They talked about their day though Hermione did not mention the V card chapter.

Fred looked too happy to spit it out. His conversation with George had went well even if it had not been a complete success but Fred was confident and that was enough to calm down Hermione.

He gave her back the time turner, she had been so busy during the day that she had almost forgotten about the magical necklace.

She reminded Fred about the fact that she needed a book about the subject and he told her that he knew where they were going to find books about the subject. He added that he was going to take her there on Monday but he did not answer when she asked where that place was.

...

They had been inside of the bathroom for more than 30 minutes already and Ginny had come twice to check if it was free but they could not get out just yet. They still had to repeat their play for the following day.

« So I will leave around 4pm to Grimmauld Place, to get ready. I am going to pretend that Andromeda has asked me to babysit Teddy. Andromeda is going to ask Kingsley to help and say that she really can't miss the meeting unlike me and then » started Hermione

« I will meet you at Grimmauld Place around 7:30pm once the Burrow will be empty. I think we are all set. » finished Fred with a big smile before to kiss Hermione on the lips, still not the passionate kiss that Hermione was dreaming about but better than the pecks of the previous days.

...

Hermione questioned him about their date but he did not crack, he did not give her any detail. She went to bed wondering where they would end up tomorrow, she was so excited. She fell asleep dreaming about Fred in a Muggle suit.

...

I know that this chapter might be a bit confusing but everything will be explained later and everything will be connected to Hermione's little trip to the past and why Fred had really survived.

Next chapter will be posted as usual on Saturday or Sunday. Hermione and Fred's first date and more details about the time turner _backstory_.


	32. Chapter 27

New chapter

Thanks again Smileyk for beta-ed this chapter

SearchingForHufflepuff welcome :)

Katrinalice5 welcome :)

Raiko20 welcome :)

FanFictionAddictions welcome :)

vesle welcome :)

and finally caroswims welcome :)

xx,

...

Sunday 31st of May 1998,

The Burrow

...

Hermione had a glance at the clock, it was only 3pm. One more hour before to leave the Burrow, an endless hour, just like that day.

She could not wait for the clock to mark 4pm. She was not nervous about her date with Fred, she was just bloody bored and she wanted to leave the Burrow as soon as possible.

...

Fred was gone, he had left with George and Lee, who had said that it was businessly important for the twins to go with him, right after breakfast and they had not reappeared since then.

Hermione was trying to do not let doubts invading her but it was not that easy. Stupid ideas had crossed her mind all morning, like what if this was really a joke, a bet and Fred had left with George and Lee to humiliate her later, to make fun of her in front of everybody. Perhaps this was part of their plan.

Ron would be so pleased but it just could not be true, Fred had swore that he would never hurt her and she had faith in him, in their relationship even if they were not really together, at least not yet.

...

Obviously, after chasing those idiocies, others had come.

Hermione was worried, what if something happened to them. She had seen the look that the three young men had exchanged before to leave and she had not like it. Fred still had so many secrets, she did not know what to expect, never.

Moreover, Hermione could tell that Molly was worried too and that was just increasing her fears even though Molly's clock had not marked mortal peril since the twins had left.

Fred was not supposed to leave the house yet, Molly knew her son that was enough to fret but on the other hand, Hermione was pretty sure that Molly was also glad to do not have Fred around as it meant that he could not be with her. Indeed, she had caught Molly staring at her few times. Even if the Matriarch had not made any comment yet, Hermione was expecting Molly to say that they needed to talk as neither Molly or Arthur had the chance to reprimand Fred and her and they just could not be that lucky.

...

...

Hermione looked at the clock again, 3.05pm, she sighed as she was looking around. She was feeling lonely, again, even if the Burrow was crowded.

She was in the living room, sat on the old purple couch. She was with Ginny, Luna, the Patil twins and Lavender.

The boys, Ron, Harry, Neville, Dean and Seamus were upstairs in Ron's room, they had left a while ago already. Hermione had thought about joining them but Lavender had insisted that they should take this opportunity to have a girl's talk.

As Hermione did not want to argue with Lavender, as long as they would not be alone, she had not moved from the sofa.

As much as she wanted to confront Lavender about the V card, she contained herself as this was not the time or the place to have that talk.

She tried to be nice, of course, she failed. She just could not be friend with Lavender and the Patils. She had shared a room with Parvati and Lavender for six years and she had never stood them, their gossips, their bitchiness, their girlishness and this was probably never going to change.

...

Hermione bit her lips, she was missing Fred, she was missing Harry and Ron and she could no longer stand the spice girls' voices that the others were listening on a loop. She was mentally blaming herself for introducing the girls' band to Ginny. None of the young witches were familiar with Muggle's music and unfortunately for Hermione, they had decreed that the Spice Girls were better than the Weird Sisters.

...

She was observing the girls weirdly. She had lost track of the conversation but what she heard did not encourage her to listen again. Lavender was explaining about how her and Ron had made up and decided to start over. Hermione thought about what Andromeda had explained her the day before. If Andromeda was right about the bond that the V card created then it was clear that this bond was the reason why Ron and Lavender were together again, just like it might be the reason why Ron never really had the courage to break up with Lavender.

Hermione bit her lips until she had the taste of blood on her tongue. She really had to talk with Fred.

Expressionless, she looked at the ceiling for a while, wondering what the boys could be doing upstairs and where Fred, George and Lee might have gone.

...

...

When the clock finally marked 3.50pm, Hermione jumped out of the couch and said that she had to leave. The others looked at her rather confused, specially Ginny.

Smiling, Hermione followed the plan that she had invented with Fred and lied like a pro.

Molly was not at the Burrow and Arthur was no where to be found so the girls had no option but to let Hermine go though Ginny did not buy the I-have-to-babysit-Teddy's excuse.

...

Hermione went upstairs to take her little bag, where she had conscientiously put everything that she might need, before to leave the Burrow.

...

When she returned to the living room, the girls had disappeared except Luna and Ginny who were staring at Hermione.

Hermione, defensively, crossed her arms on her chest and asked if there was any problem.

« No, why are you asking. You've been acting weird all day, is it because of Fred. » asked Ginny suspiciously

Hermione shook her head and walked towards the chimney, mumbling that she had to go, that she could not be late. She wished that Ginny had not inherited her mother's lies detector...

« Hermione wait please. Ginny and I want to come with you. We aren't members of the Order either, I've just turned 17 and Ginny is still underage so we were thinking that we could join you. » said Luna quickly

« Yeah and talked a bit, you've been so distant lately and truth be told, I can no longer act as if nothing is going on, I wanna know everything about you and Fred. I mean, are you two dating or what. Come on Mione, let us come, you won't regret it. » assured Ginny with a big smile

Hermione, with a foot already in the chimney, was weighing up the pros and the cons. Ginny was her best friend and Luna, well she was Luna but she was inoffensive and Hermione did not really care if Luna knew about her date with Fred, so she smiled at the two girls and told Ginny to grab the pot of floo powder.

Anyway, she did not really have a choice. Ginny could be very stubborn and intrusive when she wanted so it was better to tell her the truth.

« Grimmauld Place » they all said in turned before to vanish behind the green flames.

...

When she stepped out of the chimney, Hermione was still wondering if Ginny's presence was going to be a good or a bad thing. She was really not thrilled about the idea of having Ginny around the all afternoon, neither did she want Luna around but she could deal with Luna.

Truth be told, Hermione did not want to get advice from younger girls, she did not want advice from pure blood girls either. She did not want to know more about the pure blood society, at least for the time being. She was learning enough, too much, with Andromeda.

...

...

The afternoon did not turn as bad as Hermione had expected. With Ginny and Luna, they looked after Teddy, they fed him, got him to sleep and of course they changed his diaper. A all new experience for the three young witches that had made Andromeda and even Kreacher laughed. They swore that they had never smelt something like that, Ginny even commented that Fred and George's dungbombs did not stink that much.

During Teddy's nap, they made some cookies, well Hermione tried to help, she was not a good chief and she did not really know how to use magic to cook yet. With a smirk, Andromeda promised to teach her how to become a perfect housewife.

« Not that I can picture you as a housewife but once you will be living here with Harry, I will teach to both of you everything I know, it will be helpful for your future. »

Ginny's smiled had faded after Andromeda's comment. It was not a secret that Harry and Hermione had accepted Andromeda's offer but the news was still hard to swallow for Ginny. She did not want them to leave the Burrow.

Hermione noticed her awkwardness and asked her what was wrong.

...

Ginny sat on one of the new chair of the kitchen and confessed that she was afraid of loosing Harry once they would be gone. Hermione, Luna and Andromeda tried to comfort Ginny, which was refreshing for Hermione as for once she was not the one who needed to be comforted.

Ginny shared her insecurities with them or better said all the problems that she and Harry were facing. Basically, Ginny was lost, Harry was not letting her in and he had not said the three magical words while she had pronounced them twice already. She did not want to give up on him or their relationship but she was not sure that she would be able to cope with Harry's secrets for much longer.

She even confessed that she was glad that Hermione was in love with Fred, for the first time Hermione did not deny it, otherwise she would have thought that Harry's real soulmate was Hermione, indeed she was jealous of the strong relationship that Harry and Hermione had.

« Harry loves you Ginny, he just doesn't know what to do, this is all new for him. He has never been into a relationship before and no Cho doesn't count. Harry has bad habits, he is good at pushing you away but if you really love him, which I know you do then give him some times. » encouraged Hermione who knew that her male best friend was crazy about the redhead

Hermione rambled a bit about how hard the past year had been for them and about how, unlike people tend to believe, they did not have experience much what being a teenager meant.

« But you are letting my brother in Mione besides we had problems before your little trip» retorted Ginny.

She was tired of this old song. For her, the Golden Trio needed to live, really live instead of hiding themselves behind excuses. For people so brave, they could act very cowardly sometimes.

« It is not as easy as you think it is, your brother and I still have a lot to talk about, it frightens me because I have no clue about too many things but I don't want to loose Fred that's why I am exposing myself and he is doing the same thing. Perhaps you should talk to Harry, express your fears and doubts instead of dragging him to Percy's room each night for a make out session. » remarked Hermione who had disliked the comment.

Ginny had had boyfriends, she was way too experienced for Harry and Hermione was sure that this had really foiled Harry's plans.

Andromeda and Luna tried to diffuse the tension. It worked and they ended up teasing Luna about her boyfriend but Luna did not mind and she, kindly, shared details about their relationship.

...

...

A bit after 6pm, Hermione became nervous as she was having tea in the living room with the other women.

Her doubts from the morning were back and she did not know how to chase them away.

As she had not heard from Fred, since breakfast, she was really starting to believe that all this might be a prank.

Luna, Ginny and Andromeda said that it was not possible. They affirmed that Fred would never do such thing, at least not to her. Suspicious, Hermione asked Luna what was making her think that this could not be a prank. Ginny and Andromeda had both enough reasons to have faith in Fred but Luna, how come could she be so sure. It was not like Luna was friend with the twins so how could she assure that this was not a farce.

« Oh that's very easy actually. You two have never been good at hiding your feelings, I still wonder why nobody else has noticed. I remember, during Fred and George last year, you two were always looking for one another. Fred was provoking you and you were always overreacting. »

That is interesting, thought Hermione who was staring at Luna

« I quickly understood what was behind your anger. I never understood how you two did not end up kissing passionately after one of your rows. I assumed that it had been because of the constant presence of Harry, Ron and George. » finished Luna with a smile

Hermione blushed, she had accepted that Luna was more than just Loony Lovegood but Luna's wisdom had really impressed her this time.

Ginny bursted into laughter as she was picturing the scene and she reckoned that Luna was right and that they all had been blind for so long.

She got up to sit next to Hermione. She took her hands and told her that her brother really loved her. She added that Hermione had nothing to worry about, except Fred's inexperience and his childishness. Hermione raised an eyebrow but did not ask what Ginny meant by Fred's inexperience. Indeed, she did not really want to know.

They finished their tea talking cheerfully about their lives at school and they laughed a lot.

...

...

A bit after 6:30pm, Andromeda declared that it was time for Hermione to get ready and even though, the young witch was still a bit preoccupied, she let the three women helped her to get ready for her date with Fred.

...

...

At 7.15pm, the girls went downstairs.

Hermione was ready. She carefully sat on the couch. She had stop talking, moving, she was too nervous for that moreover, she did not want to ruin her hair or make up. Luna and Ginny had managed to tame her curls into an elegant, but not too sophisticated, updo and she really wanted to keep it, at least until Fred's arrival.

...

Hermione was glancing at the clock, every thirty seconds. Andromeda had also started to look at the clock nervously but not for the same motive. She should be gone already but she did not want to miss Fred's face. She wanted to see how he was looking at Hermione, she wanted to be sure that Hermione was not going to end up heartbroken.

...

Minutes passed but still no sight of Fred. Ginny kept telling that it was not 7:30pm yet though it was already 7:28pm.

Ginny repeated that they had no reason to become anxious. Luna and Andromeda agreed but not Hermione. She stood up and said that she needed to go to the loo.

The three women looked at Hermione as she was leaving the room, all of them pretty sure that Hermione would go to the loo to change and cry. Ginny wished that she had a way to get in touch with her brother. Fred had a lot of defaults but he was not a late person, this was starting to smell weird...

...

7:31pm and still no Fred, 7:35pm, 7:40pm, the three women had stopped looking at the clock. Even Kreacher did not dare to look at it anymore.

« If this had been a game, I am going to kill my brother. » swore Ginny angrily

...

...

Finally at 7:45 Fred stepped out of the chimney. He was wearing a regular black suit and a white shirt, he did not look hurt or in a hurry. Nothing visible could justify his delay.

The three women were glaring at him.

Fred frowned, first because he had not expected his little sister to be there and second because Hermione was not with them.

He reckoned that he was a bit little, but it was not his fault. Molly had come to the Burrow just when he was about to leave. As they should have anticipated, when Molly had heard that Hermione was not coming to the meeting, she had apparated to the Burrow, probably thinking that she was going to find Fred and Hermione together.

« Anyway, you know Mum, she was making excuses to do not leave the house. I bet she left because Dad had sent her a patronus otherwise she would still be there and I would be stuck with her. » clarified Fred

He had not time to ask where Hermione was or why Ginny was there. His little sister had jumped on him with rage. She was hitting her brother's shoulders and chest and of course she was insulting him. Thanks to his 6.3ft, he got rid of his little sister easily and they started to argue.

...

While Fred and Ginny were arguing, Luna had gone upstairs to check up on Hermione and to let her know that Fred had finally arrived. Quickly, she helped Hermione to fix her make up, indeed Hermione had been crying.

« Mrs Weasley can be a bit harsh sometimes but you and Fred should talk to her. If you really want this relationship to work, you don't really have a choice. I am sure she will understand and become more supportive. » said Luna after informing Hermione about why Fred had arrived so late.

« I would not bet on that Luna. You haven't listened to her but maybe you are right, who knows. I will think about it but not now, it is still too soon but thanks for the advice » replied Hermione abruptly

« I know that you don't really like me. You think that I am a bit weird, it is ok, I am used to it. I just wanted to help. Well we should go downstairs before Ginny strangles Fred. » commented Luna sadly

Hermione bit her lips. She was feeling awful, she really should try to get to know Luna more and to stop being so judgmental. Without her, they would still be looking for that Ravenclaw's thing. Besides, Luna was one of the few that had never questioned them or their quest, she had always believed them even when nobody else was...

Also, the young blonde witch knew a fair bit about all the pure blood's traditions, myths and legends and her knowledge could really help Hermione to figure out a thing or two or a hundred.

Hermione had one last look at her reflection on the mirror. She smiled but not because she liked what she saw but because she had found a new ally to unravel all those mysteries. She could befriend Luna, she had to.

...

...

When Hermione and Luna stepped into the living room, Fred and Ginny were still arguing. Andromeda and Kreacher were looking at them giggling.

Luna cleared her throat and Fred automatically stopped talking, he had stopped listening to his little sister too.

He blinked a couple of times, just to be sure that he was not dreaming. In her silky cerulean dress Hermione was breathtaking. She was always looking good for him but the fact that she had dressed up so nicely for him, for their first date pleased him immensely.

When he had told her to wear something elegant, he had thought that she would wear a classic black dress. He would have never imagined that she was going to turn into a fairy princess. He had never felt so lucky in his entire life and he really should have brought a tie.

Ginny coughed, she could see that her brother was mesmerized but he had not made a step towards Hermione yet and she was not romantic enough to enjoy the scene any longer. Andromeda chuckled but Luna glared at the redhead, Ginny shrugged, she needed some action, dialogue...

...

Andromeda had perceived Fred and Hermione's awkwardness, the last thing that they needed were four pairs of eyes staring at them so she called the girls and Kreacher and told them to join them in the kitchen,

« I really have to leave, I am already late for the meeting but first I need to give you some instructions regarding Teddy. Kreacher please come with us to the kitchen so you can prepare something to eat to the lovely young ladies. »

She turned to Fred and added

« Take care of her and have a nice evening. »

She turned back and walked towards Hermione. She took the young witch's hands in hers and kissed her forehead.

« Don't be nervous Honey, have fun and don't do anything that you aren't ready for. » she whispered into Hermione's ear before to leave the room

...

...

Finally alone in the living room, a nervous Fred walked towards Hermione. He apologized for being late but before Hermione could reply, he said that they had no time to talk, that they had to find a taxi or they would be late.

He did not want to seem impolite but too many things had already gone wrong and if they were late, there date would be ruined as Fred did not have a plan B.

He was supposed to arrive on time, with Hermione's favorite flowers, peonies, to blindfold her during the ride to their destination but thanks to his mother he had no choice but to pass on those romantic details.

He would tell her everything later and properly apologized but for the time being they had to rush.

A bit disconcerted, and upset, Hermione followed him outside. This was not the introduction that she had dreamed about but Fred was there and that was definitely the most important part of the dream date that she had in mind.

...

...

They did not talk during the ride. Hermione was wondering where they were going while Fred was trying to relax, he was so bloody nervous. He had planned this for so long. He really wanted their first date to be perfect but what if she did not like what he had in mind. He hated any what if and never related on them but in that moment his head was full of what if.

Perhaps he should have listened to George and taken her to the theater to see a movie, bought her an ice-cream and cracked some jokes, would have been easier...

He was so nervous that his hands were too sweaty to take Hermione's hands and he was too ashamed to tell her.

...

When the driver stopped in front of the Royal Albert Hall, surprised Hermione turned and asked Fred if they really had reached their destination. Fred nodded with a smile. He ripped his hands on his pants, took Hermione's left hand and helped her to get out of the car.

He did not release her hand and kept smiling as they were walking towards the main entrance where people were waiting in line to get inside. With his free hand, Fred looked for the tickets that he presented to the security man who was waiting on the porch.

...

Hermione had not say a word yet. She was, possibly, more nervous than Fred. Moreover, she did not know how to interpret his silence. Usually, Fred was a bit of a chatterbox, so was he not speaking because he was nervous too or was it something else, was there something bothering him, she did not know how to find out.

She was looking around. She was searching for clues and finally she found what she was looking for. On the wall there was big poster entitled Classic movies soundtracks revisited on piano, Hans Zimmer and many more artists.

Her face enlightened, she could not believe it, Fred had not forgotten the brief conversation that they had during the Christmas holidays of 1995.

...

The day before to go back to school, he had spotted her on the living room, upstairs, while she was playing piano. He had told her that he liked what she was playing though he had never heard the piece.

She had smiled and answered that it was from a movie, The Lion King, that she had seen with her mother during the summer holidays, right before the Quidditch World Cup. She had added that she loved movies' soundtracks, explained Fred what soundtracks meant, and revealed that she loved when they were just instrumental without lyrics, the pieces sounded more powerful.

...

« You remembered. » said Hermione, breaking the silence. She was impressed by Fred's gesture, he had chosen something Muggle for their first date and that was priceless

« Of course, how could I forget about the first conversation that we had alone. I had been a coward that day as I initially went upstairs to ask you out. » confessed Fred shamefully which made Hermione giggled

« Thank you Fred, I would have never imagined something like that, it is so thoughtful. »

« Well thank me later, will you. We haven't listened any of the pieces yet, they might be bad. Lee said that Hans Zimmer is a crack but I don't know about the others. »

« He is the one who composed the piece that I was playing that day. It can't go wrong Fred. I feel so stupid for thinking that you might did not show up tonight and I am sorry for being awfully quiet but I am just terribly nervous » she confessed as her cheeks were turning red

« That makes two of us. I am so nervous that I cannot even remember properly the names of all my siblings. »

Hermione laughed and intertwined her fingers with his and Fred pressed her hand gently.

« I am really sorry for this disastrous start. I haven't even told you yet how beautiful you look tonight, I wish I could just blame my mother for this one too but. » he started pitifully but Hermione interrupted him

« It is ok Fred. Words aren't always needed. Nobody has ever looked at me like you did when I stepped into the living room, it has made me feel confident about my look and that doesn't happen really often. By the way, you look great in that suit and this date is already perfect to me. »

It would have been the perfect timing for a first real kiss but they were surrounded by strangers and both wanted a place more intimate for that.

They exchanged a knowing smile before to enter into the majestic amphitheater.

Their first date had officially started.

Sunday 31st of May 1998,

The Burrow

...

Hermione had a glance at the clock, it was only 3pm. One more hour before to leave the Burrow, an endless hour, just like that day.

She could not wait for the clock to mark 4pm. She was not nervous about her date with Fred, she was just bloody bored and she wanted to leave the Burrow as soon as possible.

...

Fred was gone, he had left with George and Lee, who had said that it was businessly important for the twins to go with him, right after breakfast and they had not reappeared since then.

Hermione was trying to do not let doubts invading her but it was not that easy. Stupid ideas had crossed her mind all morning, like what if this was really a joke, a bet and Fred had left with George and Lee to humiliate her later, to make fun of her in front of everybody. Perhaps this was part of their plan.

Ron would be so pleased but it just could not be true, Fred had swore that he would never hurt her and she had faith in him, in their relationship even if they were not really together, at least not yet.

...

Obviously, after chasing those idiocies, others had come.

Hermione was worried, what if something happened to them. She had seen the look that the three young men had exchanged before to leave and she had not like it. Fred still had so many secrets, she did not know what to expect, never.

Moreover, Hermione could tell that Molly was worried too and that was just increasing her fears even though Molly's clock had not marked mortal peril since the twins had left.

Fred was not supposed to leave the house yet, Molly knew her son that was enough to fret but on the other hand, Hermione was pretty sure that Molly was also glad to do not have Fred around as it meant that he could not be with her. Indeed, she had caught Molly staring at her few times. Even if the Matriarch had not made any comment yet, Hermione was expecting Molly to say that they needed to talk as neither Molly or Arthur had the chance to reprimand Fred and her and they just could not be that lucky.

...

...

Hermione looked at the clock again, 3.05pm, she sighed as she was looking around. She was feeling lonely, again, even if the Burrow was crowded.

She was in the living room, sat on the old purple couch. She was with Ginny, Luna, the Patil twins and Lavender.

The boys, Ron, Harry, Neville, Dean and Seamus were upstairs in Ron's room, they had left a while ago already. Hermione had thought about joining them but Lavender had insisted that they should take this opportunity to have a girl's talk.

As Hermione did not want to argue with Lavender, as long as they would not be alone, she had not moved from the sofa.

As much as she wanted to confront Lavender about the V card, she contained herself as this was not the time or the place to have that talk.

She tried to be nice, of course, she failed. She just could not be friend with Lavender and the Patils. She had shared a room with Parvati and Lavender for six years and she had never stood them, their gossips, their bitchiness, their girlishness and this was probably never going to change.

...

Hermione bit her lips, she was missing Fred, she was missing Harry and Ron and she could no longer stand the spice girls' voices that the others were listening on a loop. She was mentally blaming herself for introducing the girls' band to Ginny. None of the young witches were familiar with Muggle's music and unfortunately for Hermione, they had decreed that the Spice Girls were better than the Weird Sisters.

...

She was observing the girls weirdly. She had lost track of the conversation but what she heard did not encourage her to listen again. Lavender was explaining about how her and Ron had made up and decided to start over. Hermione thought about what Andromeda had explained her the day before. If Andromeda was right about the bond that the V card created then it was clear that this bond was the reason why Ron and Lavender were together again, just like it might be the reason why Ron never really had the courage to break up with Lavender.

Hermione bit her lips until she had the taste of blood on her tongue. She really had to talk with Fred.

Expressionless, she looked at the ceiling for a while, wondering what the boys could be doing upstairs and where Fred, George and Lee might have gone.

...

...

When the clock finally marked 3.50pm, Hermione jumped out of the couch and said that she had to leave. The others looked at her rather confused, specially Ginny.

Smiling, Hermione followed the plan that she had invented with Fred and lied like a pro.

Molly was not at the Burrow and Arthur was no where to be found so the girls had no option but to let Hermine go though Ginny did not buy the I-have-to-babysit-Teddy's excuse.

...

Hermione went upstairs to take her little bag, where she had conscientiously put everything that she might need, before to leave the Burrow.

...

When she returned to the living room, the girls had disappeared except Luna and Ginny who were staring at Hermione.

Hermione, defensively, crossed her arms on her chest and asked if there was any problem.

« No, why are you asking. You've been acting weird all day, is it because of Fred. » asked Ginny suspiciously

Hermione shook her head and walked towards the chimney, mumbling that she had to go, that she could not be late. She wished that Ginny had not inherited her mother's lies detector...

« Hermione wait please. Ginny and I want to come with you. We aren't members of the Order either, I've just turned 17 and Ginny is still underage so we were thinking that we could join you. » said Luna quickly

« Yeah and talked a bit, you've been so distant lately and truth be told, I can no longer act as if nothing is going on, I wanna know everything about you and Fred. I mean, are you two dating or what. Come on Mione, let us come, you won't regret it. » assured Ginny with a big smile

Hermione, with a foot already in the chimney, was weighing up the pros and the cons. Ginny was her best friend and Luna, well she was Luna but she was inoffensive and Hermione did not really care if Luna knew about her date with Fred, so she smiled at the two girls and told Ginny to grab the pot of floo powder.

Anyway, she did not really have a choice. Ginny could be very stubborn and intrusive when she wanted so it was better to tell her the truth.

« Grimmauld Place » they all said in turned before to vanish behind the green flames.

...

When she stepped out of the chimney, Hermione was still wondering if Ginny's presence was going to be a good or a bad thing. She was really not thrilled about the idea of having Ginny around the all afternoon, neither did she want Luna around but she could deal with Luna.

Truth be told, Hermione did not want to get advice from younger girls, she did not want advice from pure blood girls either. She did not want to know more about the pure blood society, at least for the time being. She was learning enough, too much, with Andromeda.

...

...

The afternoon did not turn as bad as Hermione had expected. With Ginny and Luna, they looked after Teddy, they fed him, got him to sleep and of course they changed his diaper. A all new experience for the three young witches that had made Andromeda and even Kreacher laughed. They swore that they had never smelt something like that, Ginny even commented that Fred and George's dungbombs did not stink that much.

During Teddy's nap, they made some cookies, well Hermione tried to help, she was not a good chief and she did not really know how to use magic to cook yet. With a smirk, Andromeda promised to teach her how to become a perfect housewife.

« Not that I can picture you as a housewife but once you will be living here with Harry, I will teach to both of you everything I know, it will be helpful for your future. »

Ginny's smiled had faded after Andromeda's comment. It was not a secret that Harry and Hermione had accepted Andromeda's offer but the news was still hard to swallow for Ginny. She did not want them to leave the Burrow.

Hermione noticed her awkwardness and asked her what was wrong.

...

Ginny sat on one of the new chair of the kitchen and confessed that she was afraid of loosing Harry once they would be gone. Hermione, Luna and Andromeda tried to comfort Ginny, which was refreshing for Hermione as for once she was not the one who needed to be comforted.

Ginny shared her insecurities with them or better said all the problems that she and Harry were facing. Basically, Ginny was lost, Harry was not letting her in and he had not said the three magical words while she had pronounced them twice already. She did not want to give up on him or their relationship but she was not sure that she would be able to cope with Harry's secrets for much longer.

She even confessed that she was glad that Hermione was in love with Fred, for the first time Hermione did not deny it, otherwise she would have thought that Harry's real soulmate was Hermione, indeed she was jealous of the strong relationship that Harry and Hermione had.

« Harry loves you Ginny, he just doesn't know what to do, this is all new for him. He has never been into a relationship before and no Cho doesn't count. Harry has bad habits, he is good at pushing you away but if you really love him, which I know you do then give him some times. » encouraged Hermione who knew that her male best friend was crazy about the redhead

Hermione rambled a bit about how hard the past year had been for them and about how, unlike people tend to believe, they did not have experience much what being a teenager meant.

« But you are letting my brother in Mione besides we had problems before your little trip» retorted Ginny.

She was tired of this old song. For her, the Golden Trio needed to live, really live instead of hiding themselves behind excuses. For people so brave, they could act very cowardly sometimes.

« It is not as easy as you think it is, your brother and I still have a lot to talk about, it frightens me because I have no clue about too many things but I don't want to loose Fred that's why I am exposing myself and he is doing the same thing. Perhaps you should talk to Harry, express your fears and doubts instead of dragging him to Percy's room each night for a make out session. » remarked Hermione who had disliked the comment.

Ginny had had boyfriends, she was way too experienced for Harry and Hermione was sure that this had really foiled Harry's plans.

Andromeda and Luna tried to diffuse the tension. It worked and they ended up teasing Luna about her boyfriend but Luna did not mind and she, kindly, shared details about their relationship.

...

...

A bit after 6pm, Hermione became nervous as she was having tea in the living room with the other women.

Her doubts from the morning were back and she did not know how to chase them away.

As she had not heard from Fred, since breakfast, she was really starting to believe that all this might be a prank.

Luna, Ginny and Andromeda said that it was not possible. They affirmed that Fred would never do such thing, at least not to her. Suspicious, Hermione asked Luna what was making her think that this could not be a prank. Ginny and Andromeda had both enough reasons to have faith in Fred but Luna, how come could she be so sure. It was not like Luna was friend with the twins so how could she assure that this was not a farce.

« Oh that's very easy actually. You two have never been good at hiding your feelings, I still wonder why nobody else has noticed. I remember, during Fred and George last year, you two were always looking for one another. Fred was provoking you and you were always overreacting. »

That is interesting, thought Hermione who was staring at Luna

« I quickly understood what was behind your anger. I never understood how you two did not end up kissing passionately after one of your rows. I assumed that it had been because of the constant presence of Harry, Ron and George. » finished Luna with a smile

Hermione blushed, she had accepted that Luna was more than just Loony Lovegood but Luna's wisdom had really impressed her this time.

Ginny bursted into laughter as she was picturing the scene and she reckoned that Luna was right and that they all had been blind for so long.

She got up to sit next to Hermione. She took her hands and told her that her brother really loved her. She added that Hermione had nothing to worry about, except Fred's inexperience and his childishness. Hermione raised an eyebrow but did not ask what Ginny meant by Fred's inexperience. Indeed, she did not really want to know.

They finished their tea talking cheerfully about their lives at school and they laughed a lot.

...

...

A bit after 6:30pm, Andromeda declared that it was time for Hermione to get ready and even though, the young witch was still a bit preoccupied, she let the three women helped her to get ready for her date with Fred.

...

...

At 7.15pm, the girls went downstairs.

Hermione was ready. She carefully sat on the couch. She had stop talking, moving, she was too nervous for that moreover, she did not want to ruin her hair or make up. Luna and Ginny had managed to tame her curls into an elegant, but not too sophisticated, updo and she really wanted to keep it, at least until Fred's arrival.

...

Hermione was glancing at the clock, every thirty seconds. Andromeda had also started to look at the clock nervously but not for the same motive. She should be gone already but she did not want to miss Fred's face. She wanted to see how he was looking at Hermione, she wanted to be sure that Hermione was not going to end up heartbroken.

...

Minutes passed but still no sight of Fred. Ginny kept telling that it was not 7:30pm yet though it was already 7:28pm.

Ginny repeated that they had no reason to become anxious. Luna and Andromeda agreed but not Hermione. She stood up and said that she needed to go to the loo.

The three women looked at Hermione as she was leaving the room, all of them pretty sure that Hermione would go to the loo to change and cry. Ginny wished that she had a way to get in touch with her brother. Fred had a lot of defaults but he was not a late person, this was starting to smell weird...

...

7:31pm and still no Fred, 7:35pm, 7:40pm, the three women had stopped looking at the clock. Even Kreacher did not dare to look at it anymore.

« If this had been a game, I am going to kill my brother. » swore Ginny angrily

...

...

Finally at 7:45 Fred stepped out of the chimney. He was wearing a regular black suit and a white shirt, he did not look hurt or in a hurry. Nothing visible could justify his delay.

The three women were glaring at him.

Fred frowned, first because he had not expected his little sister to be there and second because Hermione was not with them.

He reckoned that he was a bit little, but it was not his fault. Molly had come to the Burrow just when he was about to leave. As they should have anticipated, when Molly had heard that Hermione was not coming to the meeting, she had apparated to the Burrow, probably thinking that she was going to find Fred and Hermione together.

« Anyway, you know Mum, she was making excuses to do not leave the house. I bet she left because Dad had sent her a patronus otherwise she would still be there and I would be stuck with her. » clarified Fred

He had not time to ask where Hermione was or why Ginny was there. His little sister had jumped on him with rage. She was hitting her brother's shoulders and chest and of course she was insulting him. Thanks to his 6.3ft, he got rid of his little sister easily and they started to argue.

...

While Fred and Ginny were arguing, Luna had gone upstairs to check up on Hermione and to let her know that Fred had finally arrived. Quickly, she helped Hermione to fix her make up, indeed Hermione had been crying.

« Mrs Weasley can be a bit harsh sometimes but you and Fred should talk to her. If you really want this relationship to work, you don't really have a choice. I am sure she will understand and become more supportive. » said Luna after informing Hermione about why Fred had arrived so late.

« I would not bet on that Luna. You haven't listened to her but maybe you are right, who knows. I will think about it but not now, it is still too soon but thanks for the advice » replied Hermione abruptly

« I know that you don't really like me. You think that I am a bit weird, it is ok, I am used to it. I just wanted to help. Well we should go downstairs before Ginny strangles Fred. » commented Luna sadly

Hermione bit her lips. She was feeling awful, she really should try to get to know Luna more and to stop being so judgmental. Without her, they would still be looking for that Ravenclaw's thing. Besides, Luna was one of the few that had never questioned them or their quest, she had always believed them even when nobody else was...

Also, the young blonde witch knew a fair bit about all the pure blood's traditions, myths and legends and her knowledge could really help Hermione to figure out a thing or two or a hundred.

Hermione had one last look at her reflection on the mirror. She smiled but not because she liked what she saw but because she had found a new ally to unravel all those mysteries. She could befriend Luna, she had to.

...

...

When Hermione and Luna stepped into the living room, Fred and Ginny were still arguing. Andromeda and Kreacher were looking at them giggling.

Luna cleared her throat and Fred automatically stopped talking, he had stopped listening to his little sister too.

He blinked a couple of times, just to be sure that he was not dreaming. In her silky cerulean dress Hermione was breathtaking. She was always looking good for him but the fact that she had dressed up so nicely for him, for their first date pleased him immensely.

When he had told her to wear something elegant, he had thought that she would wear a classic black dress. He would have never imagined that she was going to turn into a fairy princess. He had never felt so lucky in his entire life and he really should have brought a tie.

Ginny coughed, she could see that her brother was mesmerized but he had not made a step towards Hermione yet and she was not romantic enough to enjoy the scene any longer. Andromeda chuckled but Luna glared at the redhead, Ginny shrugged, she needed some action, dialogue...

...

Andromeda had perceived Fred and Hermione's awkwardness, the last thing that they needed were four pairs of eyes staring at them so she called the girls and Kreacher and told them to join them in the kitchen,

« I really have to leave, I am already late for the meeting but first I need to give you some instructions regarding Teddy. Kreacher please come with us to the kitchen so you can prepare something to eat to the lovely young ladies. »

She turned to Fred and added

« Take care of her and have a nice evening. »

She turned back and walked towards Hermione. She took the young witch's hands in hers and kissed her forehead.

« Don't be nervous Honey, have fun and don't do anything that you aren't ready for. » she whispered into Hermione's ear before to leave the room

...

...

Finally alone in the living room, a nervous Fred walked towards Hermione. He apologized for being late but before Hermione could reply, he said that they had no time to talk, that they had to find a taxi or they would be late.

He did not want to seem impolite but too many things had already gone wrong and if they were late, there date would be ruined as Fred did not have a plan B.

He was supposed to arrive on time, with Hermione's favorite flowers, peonies, to blindfold her during the ride to their destination but thanks to his mother he had no choice but to pass on those romantic details.

He would tell her everything later and properly apologized but for the time being they had to rush.

A bit disconcerted, and upset, Hermione followed him outside. This was not the introduction that she had dreamed about but Fred was there and that was definitely the most important part of the dream date that she had in mind.

...

...

They did not talk during the ride. Hermione was wondering where they were going while Fred was trying to relax, he was so bloody nervous. He had planned this for so long. He really wanted their first date to be perfect but what if she did not like what he had in mind. He hated any what if and never related on them but in that moment his head was full of what if.

Perhaps he should have listened to George and taken her to the theater to see a movie, bought her an ice-cream and cracked some jokes, would have been easier...

He was so nervous that his hands were too sweaty to take Hermione's hands and he was too ashamed to tell her.

...

When the driver stopped in front of the Royal Albert Hall, surprised Hermione turned and asked Fred if they really had reached their destination. Fred nodded with a smile. He ripped his hands on his pants, took Hermione's left hand and helped her to get out of the car.

He did not release her hand and kept smiling as they were walking towards the main entrance where people were waiting in line to get inside. With his free hand, Fred looked for the tickets that he presented to the security man who was waiting on the porch.

...

Hermione had not say a word yet. She was, possibly, more nervous than Fred. Moreover, she did not know how to interpret his silence. Usually, Fred was a bit of a chatterbox, so was he not speaking because he was nervous too or was it something else, was there something bothering him, she did not know how to find out.

She was looking around. She was searching for clues and finally she found what she was looking for. On the wall there was big poster entitled Classic movies soundtracks revisited on piano, Hans Zimmer and many more artists.

Her face enlightened, she could not believe it, Fred had not forgotten the brief conversation that they had during the Christmas holidays of 1995.

...

The day before to go back to school, he had spotted her on the living room, upstairs, while she was playing piano. He had told her that he liked what she was playing though he had never heard the piece.

She had smiled and answered that it was from a movie, The Lion King, that she had seen with her mother during the summer holidays, right before the Quidditch World Cup. She had added that she loved movies' soundtracks, explained Fred what soundtracks meant, and revealed that she loved when they were just instrumental without lyrics, the pieces sounded more powerful.

...

« You remembered. » said Hermione, breaking the silence. She was impressed by Fred's gesture, he had chosen something Muggle for their first date and that was priceless

« Of course, how could I forget about the first conversation that we had alone. I had been a coward that day as I initially went upstairs to ask you out. » confessed Fred shamefully which made Hermione giggled

« Thank you Fred, I would have never imagined something like that, it is so thoughtful. »

« Well thank me later, will you. We haven't listened any of the pieces yet, they might be bad. Lee said that Hans Zimmer is a crack but I don't know about the others. »

« He is the one who composed the piece that I was playing that day. It can't go wrong Fred. I feel so stupid for thinking that you might did not show up tonight and I am sorry for being awfully quiet but I am just terribly nervous » she confessed as her cheeks were turning red

« That makes two of us. I am so nervous that I cannot even remember properly the names of all my siblings. »

Hermione laughed and intertwined her fingers with his and Fred pressed her hand gently.

« I am really sorry for this disastrous start. I haven't even told you yet how beautiful you look tonight, I wish I could just blame my mother for this one too but. » he started pitifully but Hermione interrupted him

« It is ok Fred. Words aren't always needed. Nobody has ever looked at me like you did when I stepped into the living room, it has made me feel confident about my look and that doesn't happen really often. By the way, you look great in that suit and this date is already perfect to me. »

It would have been the perfect timing for a first real kiss but they were surrounded by strangers and both wanted a place more intimate for that.

They exchanged a knowing smile before to enter into the majestic amphitheater.

Their first date had officially started.

...

next chapter next sunday and more about Fred's backstory


	33. Chapter 28

New chapter

Thanks Smileyk for beta-ed this chapter

pormilnoches welcome :)

jkenz84 welcome :)

xx,

...

After the concert, Fred and Hermione, hand in hand, walked a bit in the streets of London. They passed in front of The Victoria and Albert Museum, Harrods and Harvey Nichols Knightsbridge, before to finally take a taxi to reach the Leaky Cauldron.

Hermione had forgotten her stole at Grimmauld Place and even if Fred had gently taken off his jacket to cover her thin shoulders, she was still cold. She was not wearing the most comfortable shoes for a long night walk either. She had not complained, even though she could not feel some of her toes. She was enjoying Fred's company too much to say anything.

Her head was still full of the beautiful melodies that they had just listened for an hour and a half and she did not want to break the magic however Fred had noticed that she was constantly tripping and had decreed, with a smirk, that a taxi was better than a broken ankle.

...

...

As they were walking into the Leaky Cauldron, Hermione asked Fred why he had chosen the Leaky Cauldron. Fred surprised her with his simple answer.

« I don't know any good restaurants in London or until what time they are opened. I don't really know what you like and what you don't except what I have seen you eaten at school and at the Burrow which is kind of the same range of food. The Leaky Cauldron's had been George and I canteen for at least our first sixth months in Diagon Alley and it does close late. » explained Fred a bit ashamed of not knowing Hermione's food habits.

Diet Coke and something called M&M's that her parents were not letting her eat, only her grandmother, were all he really knew when it came to Muggle food. Also, he had not wanted to choose an exotic restaurant like a thai or indian as he had never eaten anything like that before . A first date with the girl of his dreams was definitely not the right moment to make a fool of himself.

Indeed, Hermione had expected a differrent answer. She had imagined an answer more like, I wanted a mix between Muggle and Wizard, a mix of both cultures.

« On Sunday Tom makes the most amazing pies from apple to cherry depending on the season and today is Sunday » finished Fred who was trying to justify his choice as he had perceived a flash deception into Hermione's brown eyes.

He smiled hoping that she would do the same. He could see that she was happy but that was not enough for him. They did not have time to really talk yet and Fred could not wait to know her opinion about the concert. She had been so quiet during their short walk and the ride in the cab that he did not know what to think.

Hermione smiled back, she was trying to picture the twins surviving without their mother's food. She stiffened before to become serious as she was realizing that she did not know anything about the twins' life after they had left Hogwarts.

As often, they were both lost in deep thoughts or better say doubts that could easily been solved by a simple action, speaking but they were both still tiptoeing.

...

Fred waited for Tom to bring them the slice of cherry pie that he had ordered before to ask Hermiome what was bothering her. She told him and after she questioned him about his life with George but without giving him enough time to answer. She was talking way too fast to give Fred enough time to elaborate a full sentence but she had so many questions and she needed answers.

Fred bursted into laughter after Hermione had asked him if they had been sleeping under a bridge or something like that before to move into the flat above the shop. He was so relieved to learn that her attitude had nothing to do with the concert, which she had found extraordinary and she had repeated the word three times in a single sentence so that must be her real opinion.

« We never spent a night out, we had our arses covered. We had prepared everything for so long and if you really want to know, I am ready to explain you everything just let me check my coin to be sure that there is no message from George. »

As Hermione had raised an eyebrow, Fred explained her what he had organized with George

« Once the meeting is going to be over but before everybody leaves, George is going to send me a message so we can return to the Burrow and be in bed before they all go home. » smirked Fred

« Terrific so I am ready to hear all about your adventures and this pie is really good but your mum's better. » stated Hermione who was happy to see that Fred was no longer nervous and that he was apparently ready to tell her more about his life.

It was going to help her to be less nervous, hopefully...

...

Fred chuckled, took a bite of the pie and with a pompous smile started his story.

During the Easter Break, they had seen Remus, to whom they had told everything about their plan, quite often in Hogsmeade. Hermione did not even ask how they had managed to get out of the castle, nobody knew the secret passageways better than the twins. Hermione was certain that the twins knew the castle better than the Marauders, better than anyone actually.

Remus had spoken with Sirius, who had gently accepted to let the twins come to Grimmauld Place if they needed a place to stay. Even if Sirius had few arguments with Fred during the Christmas Break, he was so bored than he could not have said no to any sort of company, moreover he really liked the WWW products that Remus was bringing home.

« For how long have you been there and what about your mother, how come she did not find out. » asked Hermione hurriedly.

It was getting late, she was lurking at the coin that Fred had place in front of them, every two minutes. She was fearing the moment that would end their first date. She did not want to go to bed before to have got every detail about the twins' life at Grimmauld Place with Sirius and Remus.

She wished that she had a pensieve, they could share so much more. Maybe they could buy one, she had no idea where it was possible to buy one but for sure Fred must have an idea.

...

Fred and George had stayed a bit more than two weeks at Grimmauld Place, they had actually moved to the flat above the shop the night before Sirius' death. At this revelation, they looked into each other's eyes as they were both thinking the same. Fred and George could have been part of the battle at the department of Mysteries if they had stayed just one more day at the now ex Headquarters of the Order.

It let Hermione thoughtful for a couple of minutes. It did really look like nothing had never been written for her and Fred before the battle of Hogwarts, nothing written to put them together, not even a deathly situation that could have brought them together even though they were in love. Dumbledore was right, Fate was a complicated lady.

She took another bite of the pie and chased away those lugubrious ideas. She asked Fred why Molly had not come to Grimmauld Place instead of sending them an howler.

Fred said that his mother was no longer going to Grimmauld Place. She had wished to return to the Burrow after the Christmas Holidays besides by the time that they had arrived at the ex headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, the members were all too busy to think about a meeting so their mother had no reason to go. Moreover, she was not on bad term with Sirius but she had no need to pay him a visit either.

Hermione remembered the breakout from Azkaban, the rising of Voldemort, the problem at the Ministry and she reckoned that indeed there was no time for a meeting.

...

Fred let Hermione have the last bite of their slice and said that they should go back to Grimmauld Place, it was almost 11pm and for sure the meeting would end before midnight.

Hermione bit her lips, she did not want to go back to Grimmauld Place, Ginny and Luna might still be there. She wanted to have Fred just for herself a bit more. She knew that Fred needed to use floo powder as he could not apparate yet, an idea crossed her mind.

She hoped that Fred would not read more into her idea than what she was thinking about so she carefully shared her idea.

« We could go to the shop and use your floo network. It's easier than going back to Grimmauld Place. »

She had not say the flat, she had turned a bit pink which had made Fred chuckled. He agreed and just like her did not pronounce the word flat when he answered. He had understood her.

...

...

Fred opened the door of the flat with a shaking hand. Last time he had been there, it had been to pick up the picture of Hermione, picture that was hidden in one of his drawers, in a pair of socks, and few more things before to go to Hogwarts for the battle, battle where he should have died, where he had died.

He tried to chase the images of the wall away, Hermione was staring at him and he did not want her to ask him many more questions for the time being. He had nothing to hide but he knew that there were many things that she would not understand.

...

Fred walked into the flat after Hermione, he smiled, the flat was clean.

Taking Hermione to the flat had never been part of his plan and since Dobby was no longer coming to clean up the flat, Fred had been rather nervous about the state of it but it was netted as always. George was probably not coming up here often during the opening hours of the shop.

He glanced around, Dobby's magenta apron was still there, in the hallway, suspended next to his own magenta robe. George's robe was probably downstairs in their office. Next to the clothes was the little enchanted blackboard on which the twins were writing notes, ideas of new products or ingredients that they needed to buy for their potions...

Fred looked at the board, the last note was from April 1998, right before they departed to their aunt's house. It was written, Forge, we are out of gloves. I will be in the basement making some more.

Fred swallowed loudly, it just hit him that he could have never come back to this place. If it had not been for the woman that was standing in the middle of the living room, he would not be alive. He did not know if his consciousness about his luck had something to do with Hermione's obsession to learn more about traveling through time and time turner or not but he was clearly becoming more aware day after day of how lucky he had been that Hermione had loved him enough to save him.

...

Obvisouly, the first thing that Hermione noticed had been the apron, apart from the too many orange items that were clashing with the too many purple ones though the flat was much less colorful than what she had imagined.

She turned over and with a suspicious look asked Fred why there was Dobby's name on it.

« Because Dobby was coming here, three times per week, or four, to clean among other things. Don't look at me like that, he was getting 6 galleons, twice per month and free products of course. »

He had expected Hermione to retort that it was a really low salary but instead of complaining she smiled and walked towards him. She squeezed Fred's hands gently. She was happy to learn that maybe SPEW had not been a waste of time and that Elf's rights were slowly starting to sink into Wizards'mind.

Fred nodded though the real reason why they had decided to hire Dobby had nothing to do with SPEW. Fred was already deeply in love with Hermione at that time and he had thought about what she would say if she found out, how furious she would be so he had convinced George that they had to pay Dobby.

« Dobby was such a wonderful Elf, George and I are going to miss him so much. He was a bit weird but we knew that we could trust him. We invent our products here, we create them, we have to be careful about who we are letting in and finding another Dobby is not going to be easy. I guess George and I will have to borrow few of Mum's books and few Witch Weekly to learn the basic spells. I hope we will find the perfect recipe for a perfect pudding that might be complicated.» he said falsely desperated

Hermione laughed and replied that Andromeda had actually offered to instruct her everything she knew. She told Fred that he could join her and surprisingly Fred accepted. She frowned and asked him if he was sincere or not. She wanted to know Fred's opinion about the number of talented witches who ended up being housewives like his mother and many more. The wizarding society was miles behind the Muggle's in this field.

Fred released Hermione's hands to cup her face gently. He stroked her cheeks and claimed that he did not want Hermione to become his housewife because she was going to become Minister of Magic and he called her Madame the Minister for the second time. He had called her like that once at the hospital a couple of weeks ago. The fact that he had used the word his had made Hermione's heart beaten faster, she was not the only one thinking long term relationship.

She was starting to wonder when Fred would pop the question, she needed them to be able to define what they were and she wanted to be his girlfriend.

...

Fred's cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts.

« So when do lessons start Hermione. I will have to stop by Madam Malkin's so you can get your magenta apron » teased Fred before to laugh

Hermione joined him and they laughed for a couple of minutes. Breathless, they stopped laughing and look into each other's eyes again. They were completely alone for the first time ever and as they were not in a dangerous situation either, they both started to think about something that they had wanted for years.

Without thinking further, Fred bent down and pressed his lips against Hermione's. The butterflies in her stomach were overjoyed. Hermione was ready to bet that they were probably flying and to satisfy the butterflies, she opened her mouth a bit more and kissed Fred with more passion and let her hand fondling Fred's hair.

They had both waited for this moment for so long that none of them wanted to break the kiss and they only did when they needed oxygen. They looked snogged and happy. Hermione even said that she could not have imagined a better first date, adding that it was totally beyond expectations, their kiss included.

She was looking at Fred intensely, she was waiting for the question and she bit her lips when she realized that he was not going to ask her. It annoyed her a bit so she looked around, looking for something to say.

...

She was staring at the two white doors, that she had assumed must be Fred and George's bedrooms though she did not know which one was George and which one was her twin.

On the left door there was a F and on the right door there was a G but under each letter there was an arrow with its top indicating the other door just like if it meant that the letter were on the wrong door. With the twins who knew what the arrows and the letters meant.

She looked back at Fred and asked him which one was his room. He shrugged and with a devilish smile said that she had to find by herself. She rolled her eyes though she had expected something like that.

She walked towards the door, fixing them as if she could see through them, not that it would help her as she had never been into Fred's room.

...

She decided to trust her instincts and she opened the door on the right.

Fred's catcalls and applauses made her laughed. Quickly, he followed her and confirmed that she had guessed right, he bent down to kiss her again.

She let him go reluctantly, kissing Fred was like being tipsy but without the headache on the next morning. She wanted to stay in his arms forever and unlike she would have thought she could picture herself living in this flat, she could not say why but she could easily imagine herself in the kitchen cooking, kissing Fred on the couch on the evening, rainy days and on Sunday but she could also imagine herself crossing the door after a long day at work or even magically decorating a Christmas tree, it felt right.

She shook her head, this was way to soon to move in with Fred besides this was also George's flat. Fred had not even planned on taking her to their flat, neither did he have formally ask her to become his girlfriend despite of their passionate kisses. She bit her lips again, it was not the time to start overthinking about those stupid ideas that had just crossed her mind, one day maybe if she was lucky.

...

She was standing in the middle of his bedroom. She was looking at Fred with a smile on her face. He was sat on his bed observing her in silence. He looked happy just happy and Hermione appreciated the fact that there was no smirk on his face.

She observed the room, she was scrutinizing every corner of his room. The room was so clean, even more than the rest of the flat which was probably due to the fact that Fred had not put a step into his room for weeks but still she would have never imagined Fred's room like that. The only colorful items were Fred's blankets and pillows but still they were lilac not a bright yellow even the walls were blanked, all of them.

It looked Fred never even tried to decorate his room, she would love to have a peek at George's room just to check if George's room was more, more like the twins.

There was only one picture in the room, on top of Fred's oak's chest of drawers.

She walked towards the item, it was a picture from the Quidditch's team 1995-1996. Angelina was standing between the twins with a huge smile on her face. Hermione wondered if she was smiling because she was proud to be the captain or if she was proud to have the twins under her heels.

Hermione sighed, Angelina Johnson was never going to approve their relationship, just like Mrs Weasley and many more but unlike the rest of their detractors Hermione feared Angelina and not just because she was beautiful but because Fred had, no matter what he said, loved her at some point otherwise he would not have dated her for more than a year.

As her eyes were still glancing at all Fred's gadgets that were covering the top of his chest of drawers, she noticed two envelopes. She had recognized the stamps, one was from the Ministry of Magic and the other one was Hogwarts'.

She took the letters and turned over, facing Fred with an odd look on her face. She asked what were those letters about. She frowned when she saw that Fred's cheeks had turned red.

He mumbled an open it as if he was ashamed of the contents of the letters.

She opened them hurriedly and gasped after looking at the one from Hogwarts. The letter contained NEWTS results, Fred's NEWTS results and he had got an O for all of them. There were only three disciplines but still this was impressive. She dropped the second one and joined Fred on his bed.

« You got your NEWTS, how and when and why. » she said totally astonished

« Because of the Ministry. About a year and a half ago when Voldy and his morons had taken control of the Ministry, no matter what Srimgeour was claiming. Some wizards, under the imperius curse or on Voldy' side, from the department of Magical Law Enforcement tried to make us close the shop. Death Eaters wanted to get rid of us, remember that we were providing the Ministry with our products, defensive products and all sorts of stuff to prevent jinxes and more. » started Fred

Hermione nodded, of course she remembered.

« Well, we had become their target number one. » continued Fred who had no choice but to tell her the truth.

He had forgotten about those letters, he should have burnt them. He did not want people to find out. With George, they had become successful businessmen without their diploma, they had proved that it was possible to succeed and learnt people's respect and they were very proud of that.

« Let me guess, they threaten you using the fact that you had not graduated from Hogwarts so you could not sell your products. » stated Hermione with disgust.

She was glad that Fred and George had demonstrated that they were more than qualified because they certainly were more talented than most of the wizards working at the Ministry.

« Correct so Percy, of course, Kingsley and Remus said that we had no choice but to pass our NEWTS. We were supposed to pass them at Hogwarts but then Dumbledore died and exams had been suspended so we had to pass them directly at the Ministry, which had been better as we passed them incognito, and like most of the students we had got our results few weeks after with the approval of the Ministry that we could keep our shop opened. »

« But Voldemort was controlling the Ministry then how come he had let you keep the shop, no matter how impressive your NEWTS results were, are. » replied Hermione confused

« Remember that I told you that they had tried to recruit us, several times. I guess that they had thought that we would reconsider their offer after that. » grimaced Fred

She reckoned that it made sense. Still in shock, she asked Fred why they had never said anything to their family, to their mother in particular. Hermione just could not understand why they had decided to keep secret the fact that they had indeed graduated.

« Because we did not want anybody to think better of us just because we had got NEWTS. We did not want our mother, for instance, to suddenly accept and like our shop just because of those stupid letters. I mean, do you like me more now that you know that I do have validated my NEWTS. » he asked nervously

It would have been a tricky question for Hermione a couple of years ago but not anymore.

She shook her head and affirmed that she had stopped caring about this a long time ago. She had not need to see his exams' results to get the confirmation that he was a talented wizard but she had got his point. Fred seemed satisfied with her answer as he was smiling though she pursued.

She encouraged him to tell the truth to his mother. She was not a huge fan of Molly but she believed that she deserved to know. Deep down, she just wanted Molly to feel bad about her mean behaviors but she could not share that with Fred, after all Molly was his mother.

Her mother had told her years ago that a man was allowed to criticize his mother but only him and as she did not want to tarnish their first date, she followed her mother's advice again.

« One day we will but not now. When you came to the shop at the end of the holidays, two years ago. It was your first time at the shop but it was also hers and by the way it was the first time that we were seeing her since Christmas. Did you ever wonder why we were not coming on Sunday for lunch that summer»

« Ron and Ginny were saying that you were busy and honestly I kind of appreciated that because I had spent all July thinking about you and I really wanted to get over my love for you, so not seeing you was better» explained Hermione blushing

Fred smirked before to take her in his arms.

« Only July, what a terrible deception, I am in pain now because of you. Please don't tell me that you were thinking about Won Won » replied Fred falsely, not really, offended

« No, no it came later. August had been my month of detox, let's say that. I failed of course otherwise we would not be here today and I am really glad that I failed. » she said smiling and without thinking she kissed him fiercely.

« So am I. » and with that said they kissed again.

...

They kissed until Fred's coin started to whistle. Fred broke the kiss and sadly announced that they had to head back to the Burrow.

Hermione sighed, she did not want to leave, she did not want to go back to the Burrow where they could not be together, where there was always someone lurking on them.

« I don't want to go back either but we don't really have a choice, I am afraid. » stated Fred who for a brief instant had thought about spending the night at the flat but he did not want Hermione to feel trapped beside he did not want anyone to be jabbering on for hours about something that had not happened yet.

Anyway Hermione had already got up, she clearly did not look like someone who wanted to get caught so Fred followed her.

« Thanks for tonight Fred. I had a wonderful time. » she said as she was stepping into the chimney

« Does that mean that I have earned a second date. » smirked Fred

« Of course. »

« Good so until I think of something good enough to surpass tonight, I have a lot of things in mind and tomorrow afternoon I am taking you to a special place where we will find books about time turners. » teased Fred

« Is this what you have been doing with Lee and George today, looking for the books. »she asked casually, maybe she would get the answer if it did not look like she cared

« It is almost midnight, we have to go Cinderella. » urged Fred

She sighed, she should have known that he was not going to tell her where he had spent the day.

He had told her a lot and she had discovered a lot of things that she did not know about him over the last few hours, she could not complain.

The twins had always been secretive, she could not expect Fred to tell her everything about him during their first date but for the time being she knew enough and curiously everything that she had learnt had reinforced her feelings, nothing had disappointed her or lowered her opinion about Fred.

...

A moment later

She was reaching her bed thinking about the time turners and how the books that Fred had localized could help her. She was scared to find something that would not help them at all but she had a lot of doubts and before to let things become serious with Fred, she had to be sure that everything was going to be alright.

In the meantime Fred was wondering if Hermione was going to accept to ride Brigitte...

...

Last sweet chapter for some time. Story will be focused on the time turner and what Hermione had done to save Fred. More next Sunday


	34. Chapter 29

new chapter.

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...

When Hermione awoken the next morning, she sat on her bed for a while. Ginny was still sleeping deeply.

It was only 6:15am but Hermione knew that she would not be able to go back to sleep, she was way too awake for that. Her brain was on mode on already and the silence was helping her to clarify her thoughts.

She was thinking about her date with Fred. It had been amazing and she could not wait to kiss him again. She could not describe what she was feeling, it was so powerful.

The only thing that she wanted to do, in that moment, was to leave her bed and join him in his, even if it was going to be just for few minutes.

The Burrow was still silent, everybody was still sleeping, it would be easy to leave Ginny's room but then she remembered that George was sleeping with Fred and she certainly was not confident enough to slip into Fred's bed and have to stand George's comments.

Fred had not said much about the conversation that he had with his twin. It was a delicate subject and Hermione was quite sure that Fred had no intention to tell her what George had said otherwise he would have already done it.

...

Her fingers were fondling the time turner while she was thinking about the week coming ahead.

Again, she would have to spend her mornings at the Ministry while Fred was doing his rehab in St Mungo.

Again, they would have to find a way to escape from Molly's on the afternoons and Hermione was ready to bet that the task was going to get more and more complicated unless Fred popped the question that would define their relationship and probably help them to get away from Molly.

She was ready to wait a couple of days but after that deadline if Fred had not asked her to become his girlfriend, she would have to either ask him herself or confront him.

She got out of her bed sighing, she had to be patient and confident but that was not so easy to do besides she really wanted to be with him. As long as they would keep their relationship secret, Hermione knew that she would not be able to really believe that it was real.

...

...

Hermione's morning at the Ministry passed rapidly. She had been so busy with all the artifacts, she had not touched most of them as they all seemed to have been cursed, from the 19th century that she had no time to think about the mysterious place where Fred was going to take her after lunch. She was not very concerned about it anyway, she trusted him.

...

A bit before noon, she ran from the Ministry to Ollivander with a huge smile on her face. Finally, she was going to have a new wand.

At first, she had not know what to do with Bellatrix's wand but she had thought deeply about it over the last couple of days, when her thoughts were not focused on Fred or what Andromeda had told her about the V card, and she had decided to destroy it. It was certainly the best thing to do, this wand was evil. Hermione would never admit it out loud but she highly disliked the fact that the wand had obeyed her so well, neither would she ever confessed how powerful she was feeling when she was using this wand.

...

She stepped into Ollivander's, as often the shop was empty. The wandmaker was probably working at the back of his shop. She looked around and walked a bit into the messy and dusty hallways. She remembered the first time that she had stepped into this shop. She had missed her old wand but not anymore and she was curious to discover which wand Mr Ollivander had made for her.

She was about to call him when the time turner that was as always hidden under her clothes started to burn her soft skin. It was such a weird sensation, it was painful too as if the time turner was suddenly alive. She could feel it shivering, it was scaring her but she could not take it off, it was too dangerous. Besides, there was something weird about the old man, even Harry believed that Ollivander was a bit barmy. Perhaps, he was hiding something that had awoken the time turner but what could it be, Hermione had no idea.

She had never experienced anything like that before, not even during her third year when she had the time turner for a year around her neck.

...

She tried to forget about the pain and called the wand maker.

She must looked pale or ill as the first thing that the old man had done, had been to ask her if she was feeling alright. She answered positively and hurriedly asked if her wand was ready.

The old man did not seem convinced but he did not add anything. He shrugged and got a box from under the counter. He took the wand out of it and presented it, with an unreadable face, to the young witch

...

Hermione knew that she had to try the wand. She knew that Ollivander had to be sure that it was the right one for her but in that moment she was not sure if the wand would work properly. The time turner was still burning and shivering and she was quite sure that whatever was the reason behind the time turner's awoken, it was going to have an influence on her and her magic.

Nevertheless, she tried her new wand with a forced smile. Unlike she had thought, nothing bad happened. She tried few spells, under the vigilante eyes of the wand maker. They all worked perfectly. It really looked like this wand was the perfect one for her.

Ollivander, who seemed satisfied, told her what the wand was made of and with a smile told her that she could leave. She paid him and left in a hurry and just like she had thought once she was out of the shop, the time turner returned to its normal state.

...

...

Hermione was on her way to the leaky cauldron, she needed to drink something after this odd experience at the wands' shop, when she bumped into someone. Fortunately, this someone was her favorite redhead. Laughing Fred wrapped his arms around her, kissed the top of her head and asked her what was going on. She looked as worried as before an exam and Fred was wondering what could have possibly happened at Ollivander.

« Let's go inside, I am going to tell you everything but first I need a drink, something cold. »

Fred frowned, he was pretty sure that what she had to tell him had nothing to do with her new wand.

...

They walked into the Leaky Cauldron and asked for a butterbeer, Fred had first suggested fire whiskey though. Hermione casted a muffliato and reported to Fred what had just happened at Ollivander.

Just like her, Fred looked horrified. He said that it was a good thing that they were going to have books about the time turners before the end of the afternoon. They both agreed that this was the first thing that they needed to figure out.

« Yeah and by the way what are you doing here. I thought that we would meet at the Burrow. » said Hermione suspiciously

« And escape from my mother, no, no we would have never been that lucky but no worries, our means of transport is waiting for us outside. » teased Fred with a smirk

...

...

They were on the Muggle street behind the Leaky Cauldron and Hermione was vividly shaking her head. She was staring at the engine with despair.

Fred was laughing his arse off, he had anticipated Hermione's reaction but her face was way too funny to do not laugh.

He had known all along that Hermione was not going to like Brigitte which was Fred's flying motorcycle. George's one was named Pamela but Hermione did not care about those stupid names. She would later for sure, just like she would ask how they had got them and where they were keeping them but for the time being, she was too busy trying to convinced Fred to use another transport though she knew that they had no other option.

« I am not getting on this thing. A normal motorcycle maybe but a flying one, no way. » she said still shaking her head

Fred was still laughing. Hermione's face was hilarious.

« I don't really have a choice, do I. » she sighed

« Nope but you are gonna be fine, I promise. Come on, we have to leave now, we have to be in Plymouth before 2pm. » informed Fred with a smirk on his face

« Plymouth, is this where we are going. Are you sure that we are going to find books there. » stated Hermione dubiously

What could they possibly find in Plymouth that they could not purchase in Diagon Alley. It did not make any sense to her.

Fred smirked and asked her if she had ever heard about Plymouth's black market. Obviously, she had never heard about it. Perplexed, she asked if this was dangerous and if they were going to be in trouble. A black market sounded so much like darker Knockturn Alley.

Fred chuckled and said that they indeed might be in trouble.

« But with three wands and samples from the shop, we are gonna be just fine. Come on Hermione, it is going to be fun, not as good as breaking into Gringotts or escaping on to the back of a dragon but that's all I have in stock for now. So ready. » he said as he was turning on the engine

« Ready. » she said reluctantly

The only thing good about this ride was that it was giving her a good excuse to wrap her arms around Fred. Gesture that Fred appreciated too.

...

...

The black market was indescribable, Hermione would have never imagined that a place like this existed. It had very little to do with Knockturn Alley even if all the wizards were evidently looking for forbidden products. Most of the sellers seemed to be foreigners.

Fred confirmed that the sellers were using portkeys and one of the reasons why it was so complicated to arrest them was because they were not registered in UK, neither were their portkeys. Percy was trying to regulate all this but it was ver very complicated.

...

Hermione was feeling like a little girl in a commercial center few days before Christmas. She wanted to see each stand properly to have a better look at all the foreign products that were on sale. She was thinking about Hagrid, the half giant must have heard about this place.

It was full of animals from all around the world and of course most of them were forbidden to purchase. She had spotted fwoopers, diricawls and rainbow crows among many others.

Pr Sprout would love this place too, herbs, plants, fungis...

Hermione knew her books by heart but she was incapable to name most of the animals and plants that she was seeing as most of them were from foreign countries.

There were also so many books that she had never heard off that she would love to read.

She spotted a woman that was selling pensieves, she wished that she could buy one but all the products on sale were so expensive.

She could not spend 150 galleons on a pensieve or 50 galleons on a book. It was frustrating her. To calm down her desire to buy everything, she reminded herself that this place was illegal and so were all those products but she was so amazed by the place that she did not care if it was legal or not though she was wondering why the Ministry was not prohibiting this place.

...

Curious to know how the twins had found this place, she asked Fred if Hagrid had told them

« No, it was euh you are not going to like it but Mundungus told us, he has a stand though Hagrid is a regular visitor. Where do you think that he had found some of those weird beasts that had tried to kill us and him during his wonderful classes. »

Indeed Hermione disliked the fact that Fred and George were still doing business with Mundungus Fletcher. And she got angrier when Fred told her that Mundungus was the man that they were looking for.

« We can go home if you want, I haven't paid the books yet so we can go if that's what you want. » said Fred nonchalantly

« We need those books Fred but please no more Mundungus Fletcher, he is a thief and he cannot be trusted. » answered Hermione sharply

« We only use him in case of extreme emergency. » swore Fred as he was drawing an imaginary cross on his chest.

Hermione rolled her eyes, Fred and his reckless attitude. Deep down, she loved that part of him. All those years with Harry and Ron had taught her that sometimes you had to take risks.

...

...

It was way more crowded than she had expected, apparently the black market was very popular, they could not walk for more than few meters without bumping into someone.

At the very of end the main street, they finally spotted the man that they were looking for. Hermione gave him a despicable look and did not even bother to say hi to him. Mundungus mumbled something that she did not understand but Fred did and he glared at the man.

« Do you have them. » asked Fred coldly

Mundungus nodded and bent down to look into an old trunk that was behind him. He took three books out of the trunk and gave them to Fred who gave them to Hermione.

Understanding the mechanism of time turners by James Irvin

Common mistakes of travelers by Helena Gage

Traveling through time and how to do not loose control of the present by Matthew Bagshot

Hermione had never heard of those books, she was staring at the one written by Matthew Bagshot and asked if he was a relative of Mathilda and Grindewald. Mundungus confirmed that Matthew was Mathilda's father.

Hermione looked at Fred, she was wondering if this information was true and how much it could explain about Dumbledore's knowledge of traveling through time. Fred frowned and asked her what was wrong.

« I will tell you later. Can we go now. » asked Hermione who was desirous to leave

« Sure! Mund, thanks for the books. Here are your 200 galleons. »

Hermione was in shock, Fred had just spent a fortune in three books. She had not thought about that detail before but she would have to find a way to reimburse him. She did not care about the fact that Fred had money, she was not going to let him pay for everything that they needed.

Thanks to the chocolate frog cards, she had some money, it was not much but combined with her salary from the Ministry she could easily pay him back.

...

...

Before to leave the black market, Fred suggested to grabb something to eat before to leave. It was almost 4pm and he was starving. Reluctantly Hermione accepted to eat something at the local pub, the Plymouth.

So unoriginal she claimed, Fred smirked and said that that bar was everything but unoriginal. Confused, she raised and eyebrow but Fred did not say anything else. He dragged Hermione into the old and quite dirty bar, even the Hog's head was cleaner than this one.

Fred was trying not to laugh, Hermione's awe was reflected in her face. However, he liked the fact that despite her disgust Hermione was not complaining. He was doing all this on purpose. He wanted to test her limits.

Indeed, he was really surprised as it looked like Hermione was ready to follow him, either she liked his idea or not, and unfortunately Fred did not know if he liked it or not. He knew that Hermione had followed Harry and Ron even when she was certain that something bad would happen.

For Fred it was not bravery, that was rather foolish actually and he wanted her to change that because he did not want her to be involved, again, into another horcruxes hunt like. He wanted her to do what she wanted, not what she believed that she had to do as much as he wanted to teach her how to enjoy life.

...

...

Fred and Hermione were eating their meals, nose in the book Hermione was trying to find useful informations about time turners. She was backed turned so she could not see the people that were coming in but Fred could.

He was cracking some jokes to calm down Hermione but he froze when he raised his gaze and saw the three wanted Death Eaters walking into the bar. He could not believe it, they were the most wanted wizards of England and they were there, few meters away from him.

...

Next chapter will be next Sunday


	35. Chapter 30

new chapter

thanks Smileyk for beta-ed this chapter

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...

Fred had no time to wonder how the Death Eaters had managed to come here without being arrested. Plymouth's black market was well known for being a safe spot for wanted wizards. He had to find a way to get out of the Plymouth, with Hermione, without getting people's attention and quickly. The last thing that he wanted was to put Hermione's life in danger. He had, too often, mentally blamed Harry and his little brother for doing such thing.

Fortunately, he had taken a prototype of the no-polyjuice-needed pack. He was always filling his pockets with some products before to leave the house. The question was how to reach the bathroom without being seen, he was 6.3ft, redhead and Hermione's curls were famous in the all country, moreover not so long ago they were the wanted ones.

Quietly, he informed Hermione about the presence of the Death Eaters and his plan to get out of the bar safely. She tensed but she trusted Fred so she followed him to the bathroom, calmly, even though her heart was beating faster than ever. She had almost forgotten what being in danger meant and she had not missed the feeling.

...

...

When they got out of the bathroom, she was blonde, pixie haircut. She also had a lot of freckles and her voice was different too. As for Fred, he had mid brown hair, brown eyebrows, a beard and a much deeper voice. He had nothing to transform their clothes but he firmly believed that the haircuts and their voices would do the trick and it kind of did.

They had got out of the bar without any problem. They did hold their breath until they were few meters away from the bar though.

Hermione could swear that Rookwood had been looking at them insistently but Fred urged her to jump on his motorcycle and to forget about what had just happened. Deep down, he knew that Hermione was right and that not only Rookwood but the three Death Eaters had been looking at them way too long but they had managed to escape that was the most important thing.

Fred had come often with George and Lee to the black market but they had never had any bad experience, not even during the darkest months of Voldemort's reign. Fred loved the black market, it was a way to fill his needs of adventure and his dreams of a trip around the world but perhaps taken Hermione there had not been such a good idea. It was, still, too soon.

He was happy though as he had observed her and had noticed that she had enjoyed the experience before the Death Eaters' chapter, of course.

...

Fred was wondering what had given them away. He looked so different even his mother could not recognize him when, with George, they were playing with their products.

Through the wind mirrors he glanced at Hermione. He sighed, they must have recognized her. Her hair was short and blonde but other than those two little details, she looked exactly the same and it was not as if the Death Eaters did not know her face. They had been after the Golden Trio for so long that a different haircut was not going to prevent them from identifying her.

Well at least Fred knew on which new products he, with George, needed to work on. A more complete pack of no polyjuice-needed. Hermione's voice interrupted his thoughts, her voice was quavering.

« We should send a patronus to Kingsley. » suggested a pale Hermione

Fred replied that they had to leave first. Hermione was looking rather surprised and discontented.

« Fred, I am scared. We have to inform the Order, Kingsley, someone. I cannot believe that they were just walking around freely and that nobody was trying to catch them. Fred, if the Aurors catch them, it is over, really over. How can you say that we have to leave first » she said outraged

« It is a black market Hermione, everything here is illegal, who did you expect to meet Luna and Neville. Hermione, believe me p, we have to leave, come on, hurry up.»

« Well, I am sure that if I had been with Harry and Ron, we would have informed the Ministry before to even think about leaving. » she said angrily

Fred had to agree on this one but then he added that he was not like Harry or Ron.

If the Death Eaters had really identified Hermione then Fred was ready to bet that they would chase them.

« I am not going to give them a chance to catch us. You might be the brightest witch of our generation but they are three. We are two and Dolohov is way too good at non verbal spell. Do you know how many persons he had killed and correct me if I am wrong but did not he almost kill you two years ago. » replied Fred calmly

She looked away, she remembered too well that day at the department of Mysteries.

« We are not going to give him a second chance. » said Fred firmly

Hermione looked into his hazel eyes, she read his fears. Fred was right so she nodded and without saying a word, she jumped on the motorcycle and wrapped her arms, firmly, around Fred's waist.

He turned on the engine and told Hermione

« Before we go back to the Burrow, we have to leave Brigitte at the farm. »

« The farm. » asked Hermione confused

« Yes George and I farm, it would be too long to explain, you will see. Let's go. » and with that said they departed

...

...

When Fred landed on the road, only few miles away from Plymouth, Hermione asked him why they were not going to reach the farm by air. Her sense of direction was not the most accurate but she was kind of sure that they were still far away from the Burrow and in her head the farm could not be far from the Burrow.

She could not picture Fred and George looking for an unknown place, besides Ottery St Catchpole was a safe place for wizards and witches.

« Just in case the morons are up the air, it is safer on the ground. The effect of the products won't last more than an hour, they are samples. I don't have crash helmets but I care less about Muggle's Police men than those three morons. Besides, the Burrow is only an hour drive.» indicated Fred

Hermione was definitely feeling safer on the ground but unlike Fred she was worried about the police. She highly doubted that Fred had got his driving license and the size of his motorcycle definitely required the precious paper. She was also certain that Fred did not have any paper to prove that the motorcycle was his, at least nothing that Muggles could accept.

When she shared her thoughts with Fred, he laughed and as often asked Hermione to have faith in him. She said that she had but that if the police caught them, they would not find the situation so funny, again he laughed and told her to relax.

« I am not going to take main roads, happy. » he said coolly

She answered positively, she was already feeling better.

«It is going to take longer though. I thought that our priority was to inform the Order about the morons but since you care more about the police than the Death Eaters, well let's go and explore the country roads. » smirked Fred

Hermione bit her lips, punched Fred's left arm and told him that he was evil.

Fred had managed to paint her into a corner. She had to choose if their own security was more important or if the wizarding world was more important. She had finally understood what Fred had meant by I am not Harry or Ron. Unlike them, Fred's priority was to save their arses first, the rest could wait but Hermione could not blame him, neither could she say that he was selfish. She reckoned that she had chosen, with Harry and Ron, too often the most selfless decision but it had not often been the wisest.

She let her head rest on Fred's shoulder and said that she had never seen much of this part of the country. Smiling Fred got out of the main road and turned off.

...

...

During their ride, Hermione overthought. Fred knew way too many persons at the black market, he had contact with too many bad guys, she did not like that. She tried to tell him but he did not take her seriously.

Fred joked by saying that it was important to keep ennemis closer than friends but Hermione did not laugh, she was upset. Fred and George were reckless, they always had but going to the black market was not like testing products on first year, it was really dangerous. She was wondering how many illegal things they had done, how many illegal products or books they had bought and if there were prices on their heads.

With humor Fred reminded her that her list of good girls go bad was longer than his own. The fact that Hermione was still thinking of him as an irresponsibility man was annoying him so much. He was doing his best to laugh about it but deep down he was really hurt.

Hermione had noticed that Fred had tensed. She remembered the conversations that they had about the subject. She apologized and swore that she was just worried about him.

« I just don't want anything to happen to you. Fred you have to stop thinking that I am judging you and constantly disapproving because that's in your head. What do I have to do to prove that to you. »

« Time Hermione, I just need time. I am sorry for overreacting. » replied Fred gently

She smiled and did something that she had never done before. She pressed her body against his and kissed his neck. Fred had difficulties to concentrate on the road, so he told her that he accepted her apologies and begged her to stop her kisses or they would finish on the ditch.

She laughed and kissed him one last time before to let her head rest on his shoulder again.

She appreciated the fact that they could talk like adults instead of arguing and raising their voices everytime they were disagreeing. Fred had a bad temper, she knew that but joking instead of yelling was definitely a good way to smooth things.

She usually did not like to be rebuffed but she was not perfect, she had made mistakes and would do again but Fred was teasing her about her good girl go bad, he was not accusing her and because she was not feeling constantly attacked, she was able to accept his remarks without feeling the need to enter into a feud, like it was always happening with Ron.

...

...

About an hour an a half later, they arrived at the so called farm.

The farm was really well hidden into the heart of the woods that were located behind the Burrow. Fred told Hermione that they had used all the shield spells that they knew, more the fidelius charm. Only Crookshanks had found a way to get into the farm. Fred claimed that Hermione's cat was way too smart and he reminded her how Crookshanks had given the password to Gryffindor's common room to Sirius.

« He is not an animagus, I agree that he is really smart but he is really a kneazle. I used the reversal spell on him, nothing happened. » clarified Hermione who knew what Fred was trying to tell her but he was wrong.

She had had doubts too about her cat for some times but not anymore. The kneazle was just like her, smart and furry.

Fred covered Brigitte with an old sheet before to wave his wands to lift the enchantments so Hermione could see the all farm, the stables, the orchard, the henhouse and their greenhouse.

...

...

Hermione's were wide opened. She was looking around, marveled just like she had been the first time that she had stepped into the Great Hall.

She asked Fred if this was where her cat had been living while she had been on the horcruxes hunt. He confirmed and informed Hermione that Crookshanks had had Crookies with their female white Kneazle named Gipsy.

« Six lovely kittens we got about six months ago. We wanted to sell them but we couldn't. You are going to love them and you can think about names, we had no time for that. » explained Fred with a smile

He took Hermione's hands and showed her around.

...

...

The farm was really a farm. Hermione had expected a garage like the one that Mr Weasley had but certainly not a real farm. Obviously most of the animals and the plants were illegal in England and it did not surprised Hermione. She was clearly understanding why the black market was so familiar to her lover.

Like at the black market, she was feeling like a little girl, she was truly amazed.

Fred explained her that at the beginning they were just buying everything that they needed to make their products. Unfortunately, the margin was not good enough and they were about to stop the fabrication of many products when Mundungus Fletcher told them about the black market.

They had started to keep the plants and animals at the shop but obviously fwoopers and jarveys were not as easy to keep silent as a pigmy puff so they had to look for a safe place to keep everybody.

Nobody except Lee, and Charlie who had helped them with the animals, knew about the farm. Hermione's attraction and desire for Fred were growing and growing. There were so many things that she had not known about him, so many marvelous stories that she had never heard of, she was feeling so lucky and grateful to be with him.

It was silly, she knew it, but in that moment if Fred kneeled down and asked her to marry him, she would say yes because she knew that she would never get tired or bored if she could spend her life with such an extraordinary man. She was madly in love with him.

...

Her heart melted when she met the not so little Crookies. With Fred, she played with the kittens for a while. She had forgotten about the Death Eaters, the farm was just too magical to be real. She did not want to leave, she was feeling so happy that it was scaring her.

...

They finished the tour of the farm by the stables.

Inside of the main stable, the twins had converted a corner into a sort of office apothecary. It was full of magical objects that Hermione had never seen before, like a weird Bunsen burner. She was fascinated and listening to Fred talking with so much passion, giving her details about his work, was given her goosebumps.

« We have to inform Kingsley. Let me show you our office and then I am afraid that we will have to go back to the Burrow. It is getting late. »

« I wish we could move in here. Thank you so much Fred »

« For what. » he asked confused

« For bringing me here. If you don't mind I would love to come again and help you. »

He kissed her gently and said that he had to talk with George about her offer. It was the second time already that she was mentioning it, Fred was still a bit doubtful but perhaps she really wanted to help them and that was an offer that could not refuse.

Hermione tried to smile, George, she had also forgotten about him.

She had never had any particular interest into the shop before. She had wanted to know the formula of their products but she had not thought further. She would have never imagined that so much was needed to create the products and she wished to learn more.

She would never see the shop as just a joke shop ever again. If she did not feel the necessity to work at the Ministry and try to change things, she would definitely ask Fred to hire her full time.

...

She reiterated her offer. Fred understood this time that she was serious and it touched him. He did not know how she would react when she would know what was the price to pay to get to work with them and get to know their secrets but for the first time ever, he was quite sure that Hermione would not refuse to sign their contract.

He looked into her eyes and promised to speak with George after dinner.

...

They sent a patronus to Kingsley but left the farm only after a decent snogging session.

Fortunately for them, when they arrived at the Burrow Kingsley was there waiting for them to explain what they were doing at the black market and what had exactly happened at the bar, so Molly had no chance to nick them.

...

next chapter next sunday.


	36. Chapter 31

New chapter

Kali-blue welcome :)

hshepherd1235 welcome :)

angeldancer93 welcome :)

NanaFreezy welcome :)

and finally I Dont Do Words welcome :)

xx,

...

Fred and Hermione were at the farm. Hermione was in the main stable reading while Fred was feeding the carnivorous plants in the greenhouse.

It was Thursday afternoon, a rainy afternoon. It was hard to believe that it was nearly summer. It looked more like March than June.

...

As every day that week, Hermione and Fred had succeeded in escaping from Molly thanks to their ability to lie or perhaps Molly was getting tired of trying to confront them. Hermione had again used the I-have-to-babysit-Teddy excuse and Fred had just said that he had more hours of rehab, Molly had not even replied, she had shrugged and let them leave without further ado.

Hermione was getting tired of lying. She did not want to keep playing hide and seek.

She had wanted to confront Fred about their situation for a couple of days but she was scared of his answer. Sometimes, she had the feeling that she was indeed just a pastime, as Ron had suggested often, that Fred would no longer care about once he would be back to his real life and that was only two weeks ahead.

When they were alone Fred and his wandering hands were getting more and more adventurous and of course Hermione was inflamed with passion for him but she was spurning her desire because as soon as they weren't alone, Fred was barely brushing her, except when he was playing footsie with her, under the table, but again that was a hidden gesture.

She would not become Fred's dirty little secret.

She had expounded her situation to Ginny and Andromeda, both had told her that all this was in her head and that Fred was not playing with her. It had not helped her at all but she believed that the two women were probably tired of listening to her rambling about Fred. After all, they both had a lot to deal with.

Hermione just wanted to feel free, to kiss Fred whenever she wanted, wherever she wanted, she was not asking for much, was not she.

She shook her head and dived back into her book.

...

Hermione was also frustrated because all the informations that they were getting from the books were not really helping them. So far, they had learnt about the different types of time turner.

They would have never imagined that more than fifty types existed, neither would they have imagined that some time turners could take you to the future or to a very specific date.

Hermione wished that she had one of those, just to be sure about her future with Fred, a future that day after day was slowly getting back to an illusion, a far away dream.

McGonagall's time turner was just a basic 5 hours time turner, it could not help her to get any answers.

On the other hand, it reassured her and Fred to know that even if the Death Eaters were looking for this time turner, they would never be able to go back to the 2nd of May 1998. Death Eaters that had managed to escape from Charlie, Harry and Audrey, again, the day before.

Hermione and Fred were also suspecting Dumbledore to have been in possession of a witness time turner. A witness time turner was giving the possibility to the traveler to relieve a specific moment, a specific memory but it was not possible to change it, it was a bit like seeing a memory in a pensieve. Hermione believed that Dumbledore must had used one of those to trace Voldemort's past. After revisiting Voldemort's past, he just had to go for the memories that he needed.

Traveling through time was a fascinating subject however Hermione and Fred had not find anything that could enlighten them about possible consequences linked to Hermione's trip.

She had just started Traveling through time and how to do not loose control of the present by Matthew Bagshot, hopefully this one would not lead to nothing.

...  
...

A moment later

Hermione was still reading, she was so concentrated that she had not even realized that Fred had come back inside. He was tickling her neck with a feather to get her attention. He knew that it was important for them to get some answers but he wished that Hermione would get her nose away from the books more often.

He was getting tired of the lack of mischief and adventures and he was missing the shop but he did not know how to take Hermione away from the books. She was determined to find answers and she was stubborn...

« Anything interesting. » he asked gently

She nodded, she had finally reached an useful chapter. She told Fred that there was two different types of action. The written ones and the unwritten ones. The unwritten ones were the dangerous one.

« Why. » asked Fred confused

« Because the unwritten are the moments that had been modified. » clarified Hermione

« Aren't they all. » stated Fred nervously.

Hermione looked way too serious, she must had found something bad and that was scaring him a little.

« Apparently no. It seems that some changes are indeed written, like it was supposed to be like that, so you aren't changing anything which is more or less what Dumbledore, implicitly, told me but the unwritten ones aren't supposed to happen. I think that Sirius was an unwritten change because he had not been able to live freely. The book says that if a life has been saved and it was not written then this person won't be able to live a normal life. » she explained as she was fearfully looking into Fred's eyes

« I haven't been able to live a normal life yet, do you think that. » started Fred but he got interrupted by Hermione

« I hope not, I don't think so as you are just supposed to rest for a very limited time and you have no reason to hide. Well, you are hiding whatever is going on between us but I don't think that this had anything to do with what I have done to save your life. » she snapped

Fred frowned and observed her before to ask her if she was mad at him. He did not recall doing anything that could have offended her but she looked so upset that he was pretty sure that he had done something that she had disliked.

« Me, mad at you. No, why should I, do I have any reason to be angry like I don't know maybe the fact that you are avoiding the us subject or maybe because we are hiding like if we were twelve and we had stolen candies. Fred, it is my turn to ask but I want a real answer, what are we. Do you even like me » she said calmly though her face was red with anger

She had not planned to approach the subject like that but it had been her first real opportunity in three days, she could not wait for another one. She got everything off her chest and only stopped when she had nothing else to add, including the fact that he had not mentioned anything to George about her offer.

« Of course, I like you and I want to be with you. I am sorry, I have not realized that it was bothering you. I am not hiding you or us. What do you want me to do, I will do anything for you. » affirmed Fred who had taken the book away from Hermione so he could take her hands.

« I want us to be together Fred, I don't want to have to look around to be sure that no one is looking at us to take your hand. I don't want to have to wait to be alone with you in an empty room to kiss you and I want to be able to give a real answer when people are asking us what we are. »

« This is all I want too Hermione, I swear but I just don't know how to make my parents understand that I am not using you. » he croaked

Fiercely, Hermione asked him what that meant. Fred sighed deeply before to tell her everything about Sophie. He had not many secrets left at that point, he was not even sure that Sophie was a secret but Hermione could not understand his parents' position as long as he would not enlighten her about his past unhealthy relationship with Sophie.

...

He had expected Hermione to interrupt him and question him but she did not. She blushed and looked annoyed when he revealed that he had been the one thinking about becoming sex friends .

She just asked if sex was really the only thing that had kept Fred into this relationship for more than a year.

He confirmed and added:

« I never had a girlfriend before you. I don't think that Angelina can count because we were at school and we were just kissing in dusty cupboards in between classes. I don't know what to do but I do know that I want to be with you. So Miss Granger, do you want to be my girlfriend. » he asked with a gentle smile

Hermione bit her lips, she was still adjusting to the idea of Fred with another woman, plain truth it hurt. Fred's past relationship with Sophie explained a lot about a Ron's comments. Ron had not invented anything.

However, Hermione was aware of the fact that she could not guilt Fred and that she had no choice but to accept his past. He had said that it was just sex with Sophie and Hermione had chosen to believe him, not because of her feelings for him but because she did not want their relationship to be affected by Fred's past.

« I do but I want you to speak with your mother Fred, as soon as possible. Fred, Kingsley told me this morning that I can go to my house to pick up some clothes or anything that I need and I want you to come with me but only if you have spoken to your mother otherwise I will go with Kingsley, just Kingsley. » she said coolly

Her house was the perfect place to tell Fred about her V card and to have a serious talk about their relationship and perhaps turn another old dream into reality. The idea of having sex with Fred was not making her blush anymore, she was not a hundred percent sure that she was ready yet but she would be very soon, she knew it. Besides, her empty house was the perfect spot for undisturbed snogging sessions and foreplay.

...

Fred promised to speak with his parents before the end of the week and to demonstrate her that he was serious he kissed her ferociously. Hermione broke their embrace and told Fred that his kisses, no matter how good they were, would not fix their situation.

Fred had clearly got her message. He spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about a way to convince his parents that he was truly in love with Hermione.

...  
...

On the evening George and Lee brought an enchanted punch ball as Healer in Chief Thomas had told Fred that he could substitute the rehab by some exercises at home if he wanted to.

Fred sicked and tired to go to St Mungo everyday had asked Lee to bring his father's old punch ball, few spells later the punch ball had been turned into a serious opponent able to punch back and to throw balls. For Molly's despair, Charlie, Ron, Harry and Ginny, who were also there, joined the three young men.

The demonstration did not end well. They broke her a plate and Molly yelled at them

« You think this is funny. » she snapped with her hands on her hips

The three young men nodded and laughed, followed by everybody else

« Are you ever going to grow up. » she asked angrily

«More, Mum I would say that 6.3ft is enough, don't you think. » commented Fred with a smirk

Before he could add anything else, his mother had stunned the punch ball and with a very angry face turned to her sons, daughter, Harry and Hermione.

« Out, out and take this hideous punch ball out of my kitchen before I bewitch it or before I consficate your wands under my roof. »

« Always the spoilsport Mum, you aren't funny. » sighed George with a smirk

« George Weasley get out of my sight before I take care of your none missing ear . »

Roars of laughter from the others. They did get out rapidly though, none of them wanted to go back to a wandless life at the burrow. Ginny was the only underage of the group but neither Molly or Arthur had the strength to take her wand besides Kingsley had stated that because of everything that had happened, he had to work on a all new bunch of rules for underage witches and wizards.

...  
...

Friday night was there, the rain had finally stopped but Hermione's annoyance had not faded as Fred had not spoken yet with his parents about their relationship or with George about her offer.

Also, she was worried about what she had found about the written and unwritten changes. From the outside, it looked like her action was a written one but she had also read that unwritten actions could be protected by a shield charm. She had used a very powerful one, that charm was for sure strong enough to protect something that was not supposed to happen.

She had not finished the book yet but she had skimmed through the all book and it did not look like there was any chapter that could help them to figure out if Fred had not died because her spell was keeping him alive or because he was really supposed to live.

She left the farm before Fred, she had to get ready for her dinner with Andromeda and Harry at Grimmauld Place. She hoped that Fred would use this time to keep his word.

...

A moment later, before dinner

Fred and George were in their room talking about their products, which stock needed to be refilled first, which new products they should work on first... They were also brainstorming about the products that they could add to the no polyjuice needed kit.

They had a lot to talk about...

Fred said that he had the right formula for the bubbles' heart and took the bottle out of his nightstand.

« You sure it is going to work this time. » asked a septic George

« Positive. We just have to test it. » smiled Fred

« You've figured the problem on your own or did you get help. » asked George reproachfully

« By myself though I do think that she could help us. I know that you are still mad at me for taking her to the farm but she loves the place and she likes our products as long as we don't test them on innocent first years. I am in love with her Georgie, I want her to be part of my life which also means your life. » insisted Fred who was still not understanding George's reluctance.

George did not even answer.

« George please, she can really help us besides you better start to get along with her because as soon as Mum and Dad will have accepted the situation, I am not going to wait years to pass before to ask her to marry me. She loves me otherwise I would not be alive and I love her too, I lost her once, I won't loose her twice» informed Fred

George could not believe what he had just heard. The worst part was that he knew Fred and he knew that Fred was indeed serious. He argued with Fred about the idea of getting married, they were so young but Fred affirmed that he knew that Hermione was the one for him and that he had known it for years.

They argued for few more minutes about Hermione and her offer. Finally, George had accepted to let her help them if she was willing to accept all their conditions. Fred answered that she would accept them all. His confidence disconcerted George.

« If we get caught, you deal with Mum. Also, I wonder how she will react about the unbreakable vow. » said George dubiously

« She is not as prudish as you think she is. »

« Ok, you take care of this then, after all she is your girlfriend or better said the future Mrs Frederik Gideon Weasley, isn't she » snarled George

« Piece of cake Georgie and yes she is and the mother of my four children she will be. » smiled Fred who had finally completed his first task.

He just had to speak with his parents and then he would be able to focus on his plan which was to convert Hermione Granger into Hermione Weasley within a year.

...  
...

After dinner, a reluctant Molly let Fred and George went out with their friends. She could not argue with them as Healer in Chief Thomas had judged Fred healthy enough to get out with his friends a couple of nights per week.

The twins and their friends later met the golden trio, Luna, Neville, Ginny, Dean, Seamus, Parvarti and Lavender to go to see the Titanic as all the girls wanted to see it. Luckily, they had found a theater in London that was still broadcasting it.

Fred ended up crying which made Hermione laughed. George tried to make a move on Angelina but she rejected him.

...

After the movie they ended up in Diagon Alley, at a new nightclub, where they met Charlie, Audrey and Percy. The poor Percy was desperately trying to get Audrey's attention but it looked like she only had eyes for Charlie, who could not care less about the little woman. Indeed, he was too busy looking at Blaise Zabini.

Hermione was waiting for Fred to invite her to dance but instead of that he dragged out of the nightclub and led her to the shop with a smile on his face. Hermione was confused, she did not know what to expect...

...

next chapter on Friday


	37. Chapter 32

new chapter

chapter beta-ed by Smiley, thanks again

Lizairy Cullen welcome :)

WhenIAmCalling welcome :)

and finally for this week Lufoca Luna welcome :)

xx

...

Fred wanted to tell Hermione everything about his conversation with George and what she would have to do before to be able to really help them with their products. He had dragged her into his flat to have some privacy.

« Fred, I am really tired, could not it wait until tomorrow besides if we go home after the others your parents are going to kill us unless you have spoken to them already, have you. » she asked heartily

« I did speak with George but I am still figuring out how to convince my parents but it will be done before Monday, I swear. You are not going to go to your house with just Kingsley. » promised Fred

« But there is something that we need to discuss, now. » he said seriously

...

...

As Fred had told George, Hermione had not shrank from listening to him about the unbreakable vow. She had not exactly jumped for joy but she had accepted the conditions without a blacklash. She had already guessed that Fred and George would not reveal their secrets without protecting their backs.

Evidently, she had not thought about something that drastic but she was not afraid of an unbreakable vow, if the words were chosen well, there was no real danger and as Fred had accepted to let her reword the sentences, she had no reason to say no.

...

They did not leave the flat after the unbreakable vow's conversation. They talked about their dreams, his desire to travel and her desire to fight for a fairer wizarding community and for the first time they alluded to their future together. Nothing too deep or too serious but still they had made some plans like going to Paris before the end of the summer, making a new Marauder's map so Hermione could escape at night and join Fred and the last thing but not the least, they had decided to go on a road trip, on Fred's motorcycle, for a week or two just before Hermione's return to Hogwarts.

Both were already looking forward to that trip even if it was still two months and a half ahead.

They also snogged for a while on the twins' couch without thinking about looking at the clock.

When it rang midnight, Fred pulled away and said that they should go back to the club to do not miss the departure of the others. They did not have a curfew but all the Weasleys knew that it was not a good idea to show up after 1am. Molly was strict and her children knew that she did not care about how old they were, as long as you were sleeping at the burrow, you had to respect its rules...

Hermione groaned and sat Fred's on lap so he could not get up.

« I don't want to go back Fred. I did not want to go back last Sunday either. We could spend the night here, we could just sleep here together.» she said without blushing much

Fred's eyes widened, had he heard correctly, he was not sure. That was cheeky and that had not sounded like Hermione Granger at all but he could not say that he was against the idea. He knew how she was feeling and like her, he was tired to hide. Nevertheless, if they stayed at the flat and decided to spend the night together, the row waiting for them at the burrow would be memorable.

It was a Cornelian choice.

...

Fred teased Hermione about her idea while he was mulling their options. He even gave her a chance to go back on her idea. He was totally bewildered, Hermione did not budge.

He wanted to spend the night with her too but he had to clarify few things first. He was quite sure that Hermione had really meant sleeping as they had done already but in case she had something more interesting on her mind, Fred had to restrain her desire.

« My parents are going to kill us. Hermione please tell me that you aren't thinking about this because you are looking for a way to force me to talk to my parents. I already gave you my word, I am going to do it before the end of the week but if you don't mind, I would like to do it without having to fear for our lives. »

Hermione shook her head and reaffirmed that she just wanted to spend the night with him. She was fully aware of the consequences but she did not have the slightest concern about them.

Fred chuckled, he loved when she was sassy.

« They are so going to say that I am having a bad influence on you but Hermione, I accept your offer just one little thing though. Don't get me wrong please, I am not going to push you to do anything that you don't want to but. » he paused.

As he had not planned to tell her yet, he was not sure about the how...

Perplexed, Hermione was staring at him. She asked him what was wrong and when he blushed, she rapidly said that she had not been thinking about that.

« I mean this is not why I want to spend the night with you. I just want to be with you. I can't say that I am not thinking about that but » it was her turn to pause.

She did not want to talk about it now, she had everything planned already, she wanted to have that talk at her house, in her bedroom, comfortably sat on her bed.

« But you aren't ready. I understand, don't worry about it besides what I was about to tell you is that we cannot do it. » replied Fred who's ears were still red.

She frowned and asked what was this nonsense. Fred tensed, having Hermione on his lap was not helping him at all, she was not just sat, she was straddling him and that was distracting him, too much.

He gently pushed her away and told her that it was the truth. He gave her the details about the contraceptive methods in the wizarding world and how problematic they were for Muggles born, specially witches.

« And well the spell won't work until you've got your first magical kid. As for potions, not many work on Muggle born and they are very rare to find. » finished Fred who had miraculously managed to do not turn crimson.

It was not easy for Fred to feel uncomfortable but explaining all this to his newly girlfriend was odd. He had the feeling to have turned into his parents when they had the sex talk... It remained the most embarrassing day of his life...

...

Hermione was about to cry, she was angry and sad. Fred was not joking, what he had revealed made total sense. She had always wondered how come Lily and James had got a baby so young while they were full time members of the Order of the Phoenix, she had got the answer, same for Andromeda's pregnancy...

For days now, she had been weighing up the pros and the cons about having sex with Fred at this early stage of their relationship, thinking about the perfect way to approach the V card subject, thinking about becoming intimate with Fred and how to surpass her fears of being naked in front of him for what learning that if they decided to do it, she would end up pregnant, most likely, before the end of the year.

« It is so unfair. Sex in the wizarding community is so twisted. » she said disorted

First the V card and now this, that was too much, she was going to have a word with Kingsley. Some sexual classes were needed at Hogwarts. Well, she was going to tell Andromeda and Andromeda would have to speak with Kingsley but that would do the trick.

« I agree but you had not let me finish, I do have a book with an efficient potion. When you will be ready, let me know and I will provide you all the ingredients. Now, if you want to go back to sleep at the burrow, I would understand. » stated Fred who was hoping that she would not have changed her mind

« No, I still want to spend the night with you. I told you, my intentions were pure, they still are. »

Fred nodded and smiled. They stayed silent for a while, they did not even dare to move. They both had a lot to say about the S subject but as often, they did not find the courage to break the ice.

Hermione because she wanted to stick with her plans and Fred because he did not want Hermione to misunderstand his intentions. Moreover, he did have sex but he never had feelings for any of the girls with whom he had slept so the idea of having sex with Hermione was indeed a bit intimidating. Basically, it was a big deal for both.

...

Few minutes later, Hermione asked Fred:

« So shall we go to sleep. »

He smiled, took her hands and led her to his room. Unlike last time, they did not sleep with their clothes on. Fred lent an old t-shirt to Hermione and a pair of blue knitted socks, he chose more or less the same for himself except the socks.

Hermione went to the bathroom to change and to brush her teeth. Fred and George had extra toothbrushes, she wondered why but did not dare to ask. She did not need to hear more about Sophie or any other girl that Fred might had slept with.

...

Once they were in Fred's bed, they did not talk that much. It was late, they were both tired and in deep thoughts. Hermione's head was resting on Fred's chest, she was, again, listening to his heartbeats, it was so peaceful, at least for her. Fred's was fondling her hair with a smile on his face. They both quickly fell asleep, both with a smile on their faces, they would get through this, they were positive.

...

...

A bit before 6am, a worried George left the burrow. He was pretty sure that his twin and his lover were fine and that they were sleeping at the flat but he had to be sure. Moreover, he did not want Fred to be in more troubles than he already was and showing up after breakfast would not help his case...

George might not be Hermione's biggest fan but Fred was his twin and he loved him more than anything on earth so letting him get into trouble was out of the equation.

...

As he had expected, George found the two lovers at the flat. They were sleeping in Fred's bed in a similar position than the last time that he had caught them sleeping together.

Not so gently, he awoken them:

« Time to get up, Fred, Granger, come on it's time to go. It's almost 6am, we have to go back to the burrow before Mum is up. » he said as he was shaking them

Reluctantly, Hermione and Fred got out of the bed. They were both upset and relieved that George had come to them. For Fred, it meant a lot, it meant that no matter what George was saying, he still cared.

They had one problem though, Fred could not apparate yet. Healer in Chief Thomas had not given his approval yet. The floo network was their only option but that was very noisy...

They sat on the couch and studied their options. Fred was trying to convince Hermione and George that he could apparate.

« Take me with you, I am going to be fine. Come on what is life without a bit of risk. George don't be wimp. »

For their surprise, not George but Hermione agreed. Fred and George were very good at apparating, they would manage.

« George if you accept to take Fred, there won't be any problem. Come on let's go »

Incredulous, George glanced at Fred. Fred' smirk was saying, I told you that she was not that goody two shoes. George rolled his eyes but smiled at his brother.

Few seconds later they disappeared into a pop.

...

Back at the burrow George wanted nothing more than teasing his twin about the young witch. He could not wait to be in their room. He wanted to know everything...

Unfortunately, George would have to wait before to get any crispy details, indeed their mother was waiting for them. She said that she had heard the door of the kitchen earlier, it was still not possible to apparate inside of the burrow, so she had checked all the bed to know who had left the burrow.

« George, you've failed. You should have stayed in bed, you would have been out of troubles but I will deal with you later. Upstairs now. » she said too calmly

Hermione, Fred and George almost run to the stairs but Molly cleared her throats and added:

« No, not you two, just George »

She pointed the couch in front of her with her index, Hermione and Fred sat on the couch looking at their feet.

« Where have you been. » yelled Molly

It was probably one of her favorites sentences but Fred knew that it was not the time to make any comment.

« Did you both become mute in one night. »

She was furious and their silence was only increasing her rage. She yelled at them for a couple of minutes until Fred got the guts to speak.

« We slept at the flat, it was too late to come home and we fell asleep. »

« Too late, that's smart mouth of yours Fred, I might stitch it. Ginny said that you had left before midnight. Fred, do not lie to me, can't you just act normal for once in your life.» barked Molly

« We talked at the flat and then it was too late to come home. Mum, seriously we are not kids. » snapped Fred who had no longer the intention to let his mother lecturing them. Hermione was right, they were not twelve.

They argued for a while. Hermione was observing the scene in silence, she was analyzing everything. She reckoned that she had been a bit harsh on Fred, talking with his parents was definitely way more complicated than she would have ever imagined.

« Frederik Gideon Weasley, I don't care that you are 20, you could be 30 it would be the same, you know the rules under this roof. »

« Well technically the shop is George and mine and so is the flat so I was under my own damn roof and my rules and Hermione is not your daughter. You can yell at me if you want but let her out of this.» he replied coolly

Taken aback by Fred's comment, Molly's eyes narrowed. It was not often that Fred accepted to take the blame for others. That was probably part of Fred' strategy though so she sighed and carried on

« I won't allowed any of my children to share a bed with anyone unless you are married and last time I checked you two weren't or did you two secretly elope during one of those afternoons that you are spending doing only God knows what and where. Hermione, I will have to write to your parents»

Hermione stopped Fred from replying this time. She was appreciating the fact that he was defending her but she could take care of herself. Besides, it had become her fight too.

« Mrs Weasley, we haven't done anything, I swear. Nothing happened and it is all my fault. I got a little problem so Fred took me to the shop, we got upstairs so I could fix my problem and then we talked and we fell asleep that's all. » lied Hermione, her poise was impeccable

« And I slept on the couch. » lied Fred as perfectly as Hermione

Trapped Molly sent them to bed. She did not believe them but she would not get anything from them. They were protecting and defending each other's, confronting them would not lead to anything, it was just a waste of time. She did not want to be mean but she wanted to protect Hermione, Fred was going to break her heart she could feel it.

...

Next chapter next sunday

soon Molly will change her opinion, don't worry about

and everything will be solve very soon


	38. Chapter 33

New chapter

This one had been beta-ed by WhenIAmCalling, thanks a lot for your help :)

We are going two/three chapters a bit cheesy before the end of the story.

Julchen26 welcome :)

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And fina for this week Cat-Eye-Sapphire welcome :)

I wish you all a Merry Christmas. Have a lovely time with your loved ones.

Xx

...

...

After Molly's lecture, Hermione and Fred went to bed even if it was nearly 7am. Hermione waited for Ginny to wake up before to leave the room, Fred did the same with George. They did not dare to go back to the kitchen alone.

...

After breakfast, Fred left with George and Ginny who were going to Diagon Alley. He was going to spend the morning at the shop with George. Healer in Chief Thomas had agreed: Fred could slowly go back to work.

Fred was missing the shop a lot but more than that he wanted to get a confirmation about Hermione's trip to the past. According to the book written by Matthew Bagshot, if her action was an unwritten one then he would never be able to go back to his real life, he would never be free. The thought was frightening him, living a life like Sirius had. That was not living, he did not want that.

As for Hermione, she really had to babysit Teddy. Andromeda had finally gotten the papers that she needed to get the money of her insurance and she had a meeting with her insurer.

...

Before lunch Hermione took Teddy to Diagon Alley. With everything that had happened, she had almost forgotten about her meeting with Kingsley. She had to meet Kingsley at the Ministry to reopen the floo network at her house. She was nervous but she really wanted to see her house. She would have to wait until Monday though, the floo network was only effective after 48 hours.

She left the Ministry with a smile on her face, Teddy was asleep so she decided to stop by the twins' shop to see if Fred was still there. He was still there of course, behind the counter with his twin. He had his mischievous smile on his face. When he saw Hermione with the trolley, he elbowed George and told his twin to get use to this background.

« What does that mean Fred. » asked George confused

« Nothing yet, I told you nothing happened but I want you to engrave this image in that head of yours because one day, the baby in the trolley will be your niece or nephew. »

« Fred, don't you think that this is a bit ridiculous. I know that you love her, believe me I do but I still think that it is too soon for you to think about marriage and dirty diapers. » insisted George

He was not done yet but Hermione was too close to carry on.

« Hermione, here to steal my twin I guess. » suggested George sarcastically

« Yes George, I am here to steal Fred. My objective in life is to keep him away from you. Seriously George, grow up besides I have no intention to let him go so you better learn how to share. » replied Hermione angrily

« Enough or I lock you both in the back of the shop until you've accepted to behave like adults. Actually, I should really do that. George, we've talked about it a hundredth times, you need to start to accept Hermione's presence, is that too much to ask. » said Fred raising his voice

« George nothing is going to chance between us, ever. When you have a woman in your life, you will understand. May be if you will stop to chase after Angelina, you would find the right woman for you. » added Fred who was staring at his twin

George mumbled under his breath. After that he apologized and swore to make an effort. Fred forced his twin and Hermione to hug. He really needed them to get along.

More or less satisfied for the time being, Fred left the shop with Hermione and Teddy whose hair had turned the shade of ginger that Fred had. George's eyes followed them until they were out of his sight, they really looked like a happy family. Perhaps Hermione was really the woman that Fred needed in his life. Who would have thought? certainly not him but if Fred was happy, he had nothing to complain about.

...

...

In the meantime at the burrow

Molly was speaking with Arthur. She was pushing him to talk to Fred.

She had told him what had happened on the morning while he was on his guard for the Order.

« And what» croaked Arthur who, unlike his wife, was starting to get fond of the idea of Hermione and Fred together.

The fact that Fred was taking Hermione to places like the black market was of course not Arthur's idea of romanticism but he had overheard Ginny, Charlie and Percy babbling about Hermione and Fred's date and that date fit perfectly with his idea of romanticism.

Moreover, he had noticed that Fred and George were no longer in the shadow of the other and only a woman could pull them apart. Of course, he was still dubious about his son's intentions but he could not picture his son being such a nasty manipulator.

« Arthur seriously how dare you to ask what, you know what they've done, I am sure that they had intercourse. Fred did not even try hard to deny it and with his own words told me to mind my own business. » said an offended Molly

Arthur did not react.

« He told me that he was under his own roof so that he was not breaking our rules and Hermione came with a pitiful excuse. Arthur, you have to talk to him. I don't know what to do anymore. I've been watching them for days and I am sure that there is something going on between them. I tried to talk to them but they don't care about what I say or do. Hermione is like our daughter. I don't want to see her ending like Sophie» insisted Molly

« Molly are you sure that you aren't dramatizing. » stated Arthur

« Arthur for God' sake, they are gone most of the day on this stupid flying motorbike. I had caught them several times on Fred's bed supposedly reading but with Fred's hands all over Hermione's body. I highly doubt that reading was all they were doing. And who knows about their night moves, I caught them today because I heard George but maybe this was not the first time that they did not spend the night at home »

Arthur rolled his eyes, his wife was overreacting, as often...

« Molly, I understand your concern but what do you want me to do, Fred is 20 and Hermione is almost 19, I, we can't ground them in their rooms. Molly, please don't look at me like that. »

« I won't tolerate any grandchildren or sexual activities under my roof out of marriage. » retorted Molly

« I know and I won't either but Fred was right, they are free to do whatever they want at the flat. Besides, I am starting to think that Fred might indeed be in love with Hermione or at least like her. »

As Molly still looked pissed, Arthur raised his hands and said that he would talk to Fred

« Thank you Arthur. Once, I will be sure that Fred has not involved Hermione into a sex friend relationship as he did with Sophie then I will be more than pleased to support their relationship, if such thing exists of course.» conceded Molly

...

...

In the late afternoon, Arthur found his sons, Harry, Neville and Lee in the twins' room. They were playing at the WWW version of taboo.

Arthur asked to talk to Fred, alone, but Fred refused. He got angry and said that he knew what his father wanted, he knew that his mother had sent him.

The patriarch, not bothered by his son's comment, asked Fred in front of the boys if he had slept with Hermione. Glaring at his father, Fred replied that yes they did sleep together, but that was all they had done, sleeping.

« You just want to know if we are having sex, that's all it matters to Mum anyway. »

« You shagged Hermione. See I was right, I knew that was what you wanted, you bloody bastard. I can't believe she had lost her virginity with you though » barked Ron

« Ron, no one is asking for your comment, stay out of this. » warned Arthur

Fred rolled his eyes but reaffirmed that he had not shagged Hermione.

« I am sure that he is lying Dad. Bloody hell, how did you manage to get into bed with her?» yelled Ron who's blood was boiling

« Ron, out. All of you out. » yelled the patriarch

Obviously, no one moved. They had all known that this talk would happen sooner or later. Besides, they were all really curious to know what was really going on between Hermione and Fred, like if it was a fling or something more serious, except Ron who just wanted to murder his brother. He had accepted the fact that Hermione was not in love with him but knowing that she was really with his brother that would hurt for a while...

...

Arthur let himself fall on George's bed, between Percy and Charlie. He was looking for Fred's eyes, he was looking for answers.

« Fred, I thought that my words would have sunk by now but apparently I was wrong. Fred, your mother and I are just worried because of how close you and Hermione seem to be. We don't want you to play with her or to involve her into the same relationship that you had with Sophie. Of course, you are on age and so is Hermione but we do consider her as a member of this family and we do not want you to break her heart because of one of your stupid games. » explained Arthur calmly, his soft nature was better than Molly's temper to deal with Fred.

« Because that's all it can be a game, a prank as if I could not have real feelings, as if I could not fall in love. » retorted Fred

« This is not what I am saying. » sighed his father

« Dad this is exactly what you are saying. I am not playing with her, I would never do such thing, I would never play with someone's feelings especially if this someone is Hermione and the answer to your first question is yes, we've slept together in the same bed but that's all we've done, sleeping. I did not touch her and I would never touch her without her consent and for your information, I do have feelings for her. I am in love with her since I am 17 years old, do the maths Dad, three fucking years yes. » confessed Fred

Except George, Percy and Charlie, they all had ben taken aback by his confession. That was odd, a bit, Fred in love with Hermione since 1995 but Fred seemed serious. They looked at George, just in case this was a joke but George's face was even more serious than Fred.

« Well that's clear now. » said Arthur awkwardly

« If you excuse me, I need some fresh air » snorted Fred

He left the room in a hurry, he had finally spit it out, would it be enough for his father to believe him or not, he could not say.

He was exaggerating his anger to make his father feel bad. He was offended of course but if he did not overplay a bit, his father would not believe him. Also, he was slightly embarrassed, he had just revealed his feelings in front of everybody and that had not been part of his plan.

...

The fact that his father was not running after him meant that his words had affected his father. He smirked.

His mother was the only one left but his mother would need proof and he was still working on that.

...

...

In the kitchen, where the women were preparing dinner, they all looked stunned when they saw Fred storming out of the house. Neither did they understand, except Hermione, why he had sent a death stare at his mother.

Hermione had stopped cutting her carrots, she was torn between her heart's desires and Molly's frowned eyebrows, she chose to follow her heart. She picked up her own jacket and ran after Fred.

She followed him to the farm. Panting, she asked him what was wrong. Fred, who was already on his motorbike, grinned at her and told her to get on.

« Fred wait, where are we going. »

He summarised what had just happened, Hermione was not convinced that his tactic would work but he knew his father, she had to trust him. But what had impacted her the most was definitely Fred's confession, she was overjoyed. She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely, pressing her body against his and her hands all over his chest.

Breathless, Fred was smiling genuinely. If this was his reward for sharing his feelings with his siblings, friends and father, he could not wait to see what would come after speaking with his mother.

« Are you coming or not » asked Fred who was still trying to think straight after this passionate kiss

She nodded, sat behind Fred and wrapped her arms around his waist. She let her head rest on the back of his neck. She did not even ask where they were going, as long as they were together, she did not care.

...

They headed north and stopped near Bristol. They spent the evening together and had so much fun. As the days were long and it was not darkening until 9pm, Fred drove to the seaside. They walked along the beach and did not return to the parking until dusk.

« I think we should go back home or Mum is going to murder us. »

Hermione agreed. She knew that the situation at the burrow would be tensed for the next few days but at least they would not have to leave the house every time that they wanted to be together.

...

Fred was already on his motorcycle, waiting for Hermione to get on when he felt the urge to tell her something. He wanted to make clear that he was taking very seriously their relationship. For some reasons, Hermione was still doubtful. He could, sometimes, see it in her eyes.

« Hermione, do you remember when I asked you how you had pictured our _what if _relationship. »

She nodded wondering where that would lead. She had thought that this subject was definitely closed.

« Well, I've realized that I never told you about my _what if._ Yes, I had my own _what if_. »

« And is this just teasing or are you going to share with the rest of the class. » asked Hermione confused

What can be so important now that wasn't days ago? she thought worriedly

« As I said, I do agree with your version though there is one thing, remember when I told you that I am quite sure that you would have pushed me away or worst breaking up with me before leaving with Harry and Ron. »

Again, she nodded and sighed deeply. Was Fred seriously going to mention a break up that belonged nowhere but in their heads and taking the risk to ruin what they had decided to call their second date? She stood still, waiting for Fred to explain himself.

« I had forgotten to tell you that I would not have let you break up with me. I would have let you go but I would not have let you push me away without fighting. I have no idea what would have happened then. »

« But. » interrupted Hermione looking into his eyes

« But a break up would not have changed our feelings. If we are here now, why would it have been different? Hermione, in all the versions of my life that I can think about, there is not one that I can picture without you by my side. I have no idea about that time turner episode but safe to assume that it would have happened as well and » he paused

Hermione was still looking into his eyes, waiting for the big news

« And I would have ask you to marry me right after opening my eyes, after two weeks in coma, I would not have wanted to wait anymore and taken the risk to be separated from you ever again. »

« You would have proposed. » she stated disconcerted

« Yes, what your answer would have been? » asked Fred, he was curious to know

Hermione bit her lips, she was trying to imagine herself in that position, with this backstory which was so different from their reality but at the same time so close.

« As crazy as it is going to sound, I would have said yes. » she affirmed with a smile

Fred wrapped his arms around her waist, it was his time to kiss her fiercely.

« Thanks for sharing Fred but why now? » she asked after breaking the kiss

« Because I don't really know how to demonstrate you that I am all in. Hermione, I love you, I have for a very long time. Your love for me saved my life but I can guarantee that my feelings are as deep as yours. »

She tenderly kissed his lips, she had understood where this was coming from.

« Oh Fred, I no longer have doubts about your feelings for me. I am just baited because of the lack of answers that we are getting from the books, because of your mother, and she is getting on my nerves. Seriously Fred, I cannot wait to leave the burrow. I love you too Fred and I always will. Always and forever. » she affirmed

« Always and forever, I kind of like that, could become our mantra. So let's go home. » he said with a smile that made Hermione's heart and body melted.

...

That night she went to bed serene, aroused and excited. Hearing the three magical words had made her so happy but she wanted more, even if she did not know how to define that more yet. She just knew that she wanted to be with Fred all the time.

She knew that people would say that it was the same for all people at the beginning of a new relationship but she begged to differ.

Her relationship with Fred was not new, it had started three years ago. Nothing had happened then and without her trip to the past certainly nothing would have ever happened but it did not matter, their feelings for each other were not new that was why she could not totally consider her relationship with Fred as a new one.

Sometimes, she even had the weird sensation that their what if had really happened, like if she had lived them. She was probably going mad but she could have sworn that Fred's proposal had been more than hypothetical and she fell asleep with that thought.

...

next chapter before the end of the week and I wish you again a Merry Christmas :)))


	39. Chapter 34

New chapter

I wish you all a Happy New Year, love, health, money, jobs opportunities... I wish you whatever you want for this new year :)

Thanks WhenIAmCalling for being the beta on this chapter

chester258 welcome :)

C-Melinda welcome :)

dingus101 welcome :)

LCMe welcome :)

and finally for this week tinkstephens1 welcome :)

Xx

...

...

On Sunday, after lunch, Hermione, Fred, and George, who had finally decided to give Hermione a chance, were brainstorming about what Hermione and Fred had already discovered about time turners.

They had made a very interesting discovery. In Matthew Bagshot's book, which Hermione had not finished yet, there was a full chapter about how time turners were all connected.

It was written that a time turner, or its magic, could sense the presence of other time turners, except when a time turner was in use. The sensation described by the writer was very similar to what Hermione had felt almost a week ago at Ollivander's.

They all agreed to say that Ollivander was a weird enough man to possess a time turner. They needed to check with Percy. If Ollivander really had one, he should have registered it, he should have...

« Maybe Voldy's morons know about this one and are actually looking for this one. Would make more sense that being after McGonagall's, wouldn't it? » suggested Fred.

Hermione and George nodded, both looked worried.

Hermione did not like this new discovery, and neither did Fred and George, as none of them really trusted the wand maker.

They were ready to bet that Ollivander had never registered his time turner otherwise Kingsley, Percy, and all the wizards working at the Ministry would have looked for this one first. The shop was just meters away from the Ministry.

« What if he had created one, when Voldemort had taken him? Maybe he had ordered Ollivander to make him a time turner. Hermione, didn't you say that you have read that creating a time turner was as complicated as making wands? » said George.

« I did read it but making a wand is complicated because of the elements that you need to pair, you need to be sure that they can produce magic. On the other hand, creating a time turner is not just about associating a tail of whatever with a specific wood, it is very complex magic. I am not sure that Ollivander is qualified to make one. Besides, you need goblin's gold; otherwise it won't work. » explained Hermione.

« And remind me who was with you at Malfoy's Manor, and I am not talking about Luna or Dean. » stated Fred.

Hermione bit her lips; she had never thought about this possibility. Nevertheless, Griphook had been caught by accident. The goblin had decided to run away, that was true, but it had not been because Voldemort was after him.

On the other hand, it was true that Griphook had run away because he did not want to acknowledge Voldemort as his Master, who knew what Voldemort had ordered them to do.

She did not want to believe in that theory but it was possible. Voldemort wanting to possess a time turner was plausible, he knew that he had lost control and a time turner could have given him the possibility of controlling time and space. As for Dolohov and Rookwood knowing, Voldemort would have never told them but he would have told Bellatrix, who was married to Rodolphus Lestrange. Would she have told him though? Hermione doubted it but who knew, she did not know what bond Bellatrix and her husband shared but Andromeda did.

She looked at Fred gloomily as she was wondering if this war was ever going to end, really end...

...

They regretted not being able to talk with Kingsley or one of the Aurors but exposing Hermione's secret was way too dangerous. At least they had Percy and Andromeda to help them, but if what they were thinking was correct, they needed to catch this time turner before the Death Eaters.

The time turner was hidden at the shop and the shop was under the constant vigilance of the Aurors which could explain why the Death Eaters had not tried anything yet.

Soon, the trials would start and people would be sent to Azkaban. At least that was comforting. Therefore, after the first of September, Ollivander' shop would not have to be overprotected, perhaps the Death Eaters were just waiting for the right moment, patiently waiting...

Hermione did not want to put Fred and George's lives in danger but Fred would never let her do it all alone, she knew it. George, who was observing her, insisted on how dangerous this could be and he added that they should not try to find the time turner that was hidden at the shop.

« We should try to find a way to destroy McGonagall's one or, and it is a stupid suggestion but now that we know this, why don't we just replace it where it belongs so McGonagall can take it to the Ministry where it will be safe? » finished George.

« We cannot because the Ministry is going to check all the time turners. We need to find a way to wipe off Hermione's trip without putting our arses in danger and we haven't found anything about how yet. » stated Fred.

« If you destroy a time turner, which is almost as complicated as getting rid of a horcrux, then you take the risk of erasing the changes that have been done-well the unwritten ones. And as we don't know yet if my trip led to a written change or an unwritten one, we can't take any risks. » clarified Hermione who had noticed that George was looking rather confused after Fred's comment.

...

George was rubbing his chin. Hermione and Fred's situation was so twisted. Of course, he was grateful for what Hermione had done and forever would be but a part of him was fearing the consequences of her reckless action. They had to sort that written/unwritten thing out. All this speculation was driving him crazy.

« Well I think that we should figure that out first and forget about Ollivander's time turner, at least for the time being. They aren't going to try to break into Ollivander's, it is too dangerous for them at the moment and unlike we love to think, they aren't stupid; Dolohov was top of his class, OWLS and NEWTS. »

Hermione and Fred had to agree with George on this one.

...

...

They spent the rest of the afternoon studying the book written by Matthew Bagshot and as Hermione had suspected from the beginning, it did not give them any hint about how to resolve their biggest doubt. Nevertheless, they learnt that a protected unwritten action was as good as a written one and despite their countless doubts, they were sure about one thing: Fred was alive either because of the spell or because he was supposed to live which meant that his life was not in immediate danger.

They could not return the time turner where it belonged though, it would be silly as it would expose Hermione and Fred.

They did think about destroying it but McGonagall had told Kingsley that she was going to bring him the time turner and Kingsley was probably already wondering what was taking so long...

« We have no choice, we need to find a way to strip down the time turner, extract my trip-which is one of those grains of sand, according to the book-before returning it. » explained Hermione.

« Yes and we have to go back to the black market. Tomorrow we have to go to your house but we could go on Tuesday. » pursued Fred.

« But we don't have polyjuice potion and the Death Eaters might be there, how are we going to make it. It is not safe, we cannot, can we?» asked Hermione desolately.

Fred and George's eyes met. They had a solution but they could not tell her anything, yet. They still had not had time to set a moment to perform the unbreakable vow.

« Well that's led to part B of our afternoon. We have few ideas and samples for the no polyjuice needed kit but we cannot share them with you unless you are ready for the unbreakable vow. You did agree so what do you say about doing it now?» suggested George who wanted to corner Hermione.

It was so hard for him to believe that she had really accepted that condition. Hermione was constantly surprising him lately, that was true but this one just seemed too big to be true.

Fred had stopped breathing, George had been straightforward, too straightforward, or at least he thought so, indeed Hermione answered that she was ready.

...

...

It was almost time for dinner. They really had spent all afternoon in the twins' room. It had been productive and they had not been disturbed as most of the inhabitants of the Burrow had left the house after lunch but soon they all would return so if they wanted to perform the unbreakable vow, they had to hurry up.

Hermione went to Ginny's room to pick up her diary where she had written the vows. The twins read them and approved of every word.

...

A few minutes later, they were ready.

Hermione and Fred were standing in the middle of the room. George was standing between them, he was the witness. He was feeling like a priest at a wedding, mostly because of the way that his brother and his girlfriend were looking at each other.

George even joked about it, reminding them jovially that he was not going to marry them. The lovers blushed but replied that they knew. George rolled his eyes, cleared his throat and asked them if they were ready.

Fred took Hermione hands in his, they were ready.

George raised his wand and started:

« Will you Hermione Jean Granger keep all our recipes secret and never divulge their contents no matter what they offer to you in compensation? »

« I will. »

« And even under threats, blackmail, extortion or persecution you won't reveal anything? »

« I won't. »

« And do you Hermione Jean Granger swear that you won't reveal any of our secrets even if you and Fred break up, even if Fred breaks your heart? »

« I swear. » she said timidly.

She knew that this line would be the hardest. Fred had said that there was no need to have a line like this one but George had insisted.

« And will you keep your secret until the day you die?»

« I will. »

All smiles, George put his wand back in his pocket. He was glowing because no matter would happen, Hermione could not betray them. Unlike Fred, he had never forgotten when she had threatened to write to their mother.

He also very happy as he knew that there was only one thing that could have made Hermione do it and it was love. He looked into his brother's eyes and smiled. Fred chuckled, he grabbed Hermione and George and hugged them tightly.

« One for all and all for one. I love you both. » he said as a huge smile was lighting his face.

...

...

When she went to bed that night, Hermione stayed awake for a while, looking at the ceiling.

She was linked to Fred, she had accepted an unbreakable vow and she was not even worried about what they had done, quite the contrary actually, she was feeling fuller and happier.

It was common in the Muggles' world to say that love was blind, perhaps it was true.

She tried to close her eyes but her brain was still not ready to rest. She was trying to think logically about Ollivander's time turner. George was right, they did not have to care about the other time turner and its purchasers but didn't they have to be sure that their theory was right? That was the thing that was bothering her.

In the past, every time that she had found herself with Harry and Ron in similar situations, they always had taken the risk even if it had often driven they them into more trouble.

She had assumed that the twins were not like Harry and Ron and that they would not put their lives in danger for the sake of the wizarding community or to satisfy a hero complex that the trio had but Hermione was not used to this careless attitude just yet.

She had said that she was done chasing the bad guys when Kingsley had come to recruit aurors. Perhaps it was time to really put her words into action and to focus on what was really important- finding out why Fred had really survived.

She sighed, closed her eyes, and finally fell asleep.

...

...

next chapter at some point next week


	40. Chapter 35 part I

New chapter

thanks WhenIAmCalling for helping me and being my beta.

I hope that you are still enjoying this fic. We still have few chapters left but thanks for following :)))

roxy411 welcome :)

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xx,

...

Fred was alone at the Burrow. He was waiting for Hermione and Kingsley to come back from the Ministry so they could depart together to Hermione's house.

It was Fred's third week at the Burrow, his fourth week since he had woken up from his coma and he could not believe how his life had changed in just a few weeks.

Suddenly all his dreams were coming true. He had been scared at the beginning but not anymore. He had not wanted to believe that he could be that lucky but it was not luck, it was magic: Hermione's love had saved his life and he had gladly accepted the idea.

Of course, he was afraid of what they would find out about his fate, the time turner and Hermione's.

However, no matter what they might learn, Fred was not going to let his fears dragging him down-everything was connected, they just did not know how. Evidently, Hermione was determined to resolve this equation and she would...

He had got a second chance, he was not going to waste it.

Fred glanced at the clock, it was almost noon. Hermione and Kingsley were about to arrive. He smiled genuinely, he was happy that Hermione had asked him to go with her. He had been at her house once, for less than ten minutes, three years ago when his father had ordered him and George to pick her up, so she could spend the summer with them at Grimmauld Place. The impressions that he had got that day were that Hermione's mother was a posh grownup version of Hermione with straight hair, that the house was too big for just three people, and too clean.

...

...

About thirty minutes later, they were ready to leave. Fred could see that Hermione was nervous.

They knew that Death Eaters had visited her house, Kingsley had informed Hermione about it days ago however he had not said what condition the house was in so they had no idea about what they were going to find. Hopefully it would not be as bad as the state of the Burrow... Fred had not seen it but everybody had told him that it was really bad.

Nevertheless, he could not define why Hermione was that nervous or guess that it had not much to do with the possible state of her house.

...

...

The house had clearly been visited by Death Eaters but curiously most of the items in the house were intact. Fred said jokingly that the Death Eaters might have been afraid of the toaster, the video recorder and the microwave. Hermione and Kingsley laughed as they were imagining the Death Eaters running away from the house after trying to turn on one of the domestic appliances.

Kingsley stated that Hermione could move back in if she wanted. He added that the house was under the protection of the Order. Hermione reminded him that she had accepted Andromeda's offer and that she was really looking forward to live with Harry and Andromeda at Grimmauld Place.

« I know that it sounds silly but Harry is like a brother to me and Andromeda is like a second mother to me, she had even warned us that we will have rules to follow and I need that, I need to have a home. Please Fred don't think that I don't appreciate your parents' hospitality but... »

He interrupted her, he had to.

« Don't worry, I understand. I am also looking forward to move back to the flat with George and bringing you home after your curfew. » smirked Fred.

Kingsley chuckled and admitted that he had thought that perhaps the two lovers would like to move in together and Hermione's house would have been the perfect place for it. Fred and Hermione giggled, it was too soon for them to think about something like that.

They both had been through a lot and for the sake of their relationship they knew that moving together was not a good idea, it was too soon. Besides, Hermione would leave to Hogwarts at the end of the summer.

...

They talked for a while, sitting around the table in the dining room, about everything and nothing. Fred asked how the time turner's hunt was going, Hermione almost stopped breathing when he did but luckily Kingsley did not notice. He was too angry for that. The hunt was a complete disaster, they had not even got half of the registered time turners, the owners were pretending to have lost them or to have been robbed.

« Even Minerva cannot find hers, it is driving me crazy, bunch of liars. I am not blaming Minerva, her time turner is probably the only one that had really been stolen. We've looked everywhere, it is not at Hogwarts. » conceded Kingsley.

Hermione asked if he was still thinking that the Death Eaters had it or that they were looking for it. The Minister shook his head. Just like them, he had made some research and had found out that this time turner was a basic one, useless to change something that had happened more than a month ago.

« And actually this is what is driving me crazy Kids. I just don't understand why someone would steal a time turner than can only make you travel few hours back when some of them can take you to the middle age or the 25th century. It had been taken during the battle, I am sure about it but why and by whom, I have no clue and honestly since I've learnt that no damage can be done with this one, I kind of have stopped looking for it, at least for now. I have to catch Dolohov, Rookwood and Lestrange first, that is my and the Aurors' priority. » explained Kingsley who was still visibly worried about the three Death Eaters.

Fred and Hermione's eyes met, they were relieved. They could investigate, nobody was suspecting them and as long as the three morons would be out, nobody would really care about Prof. McGonagall's time turner.

« Well, I have to go back to the Ministry. Hermione, Fred, only you two can travel here and I of course so you are safe here. You can travel here from every open floo network but nobody can follow you. It is quite amazing really, people working at the Department of Magical Transportation are doing an amazing job and with that said, I can leave you two alone. Hermione see you tomorrow at the Ministry and Fred, I will see you around. » he said as he was stepping into the chimney.

Hermione and Fred stood and watched him disappear.

Once he was gone, Fred wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and kissed her tenderly. It awoke the butterflies in Hermione' stomach and reminded her the purpose of this trip.

Fred had pronounced the three magic words, she had pronounced them too and he knew that she was a virgin so Hermione was quite sure that Fred would not be surprised to find out that she had written his name on her V card, even if she had done it two years ago, but still she was terribly nervous. Her speech was prepared but being alone with Fred, in her house, knowing that nobody else could come was intimidating and she did not know how to start.

Fred was observing her, he asked her what was wrong and if she wanted to leave. She kissed him on the cheek and told him that she was fine. She said that she had the feeling that it was no longer her house, that the Hermione that used to live in this house was gone.

« So much had happened in one year. I don't even know if my parents are alive or not, I miss them so much, I cannot live here without them, never but I had to come. One last bit of myself is here Fred and it really matters to me and I want to share it with you. I need to share it with you before to say goodbye to my house. I hope that you are not going to think that I am crazy » she said worriedly.

Fred did not know what to answer. He would have never imagined that Hermione had asked him to come for something more than mental support. He hugged her tightly and whispered into her ear that she could tell him everything, that he would always support her.

She broke their embrace and dragged him upstairs without saying anything. Her heart was beating faster than ever, just like she had imagined except that she was no longer dreaming, Fred was really her boyfriend and she was really about to give him her V card.

She still wanted to curse Lavender for giving her the card and herself for accepting it without asking anything but maybe for once in her life, fate was not going to play a trick on her. Besides, she didn't have the intention of losing her virginity that same afternoon, she just wanted to give it to Fred and talk about it. She also wanted to tell him that they should brew the potion to be ready when the perfect timing would come. After all, she was still Hermione Granger and Hermione Granger always anticipated everything.

...

...

Upstairs, she first gave him a tour of the floor, the master bedroom of her parents, the bathroom, the loo, the two extra bedrooms before to finally take him to her room.

They were both silent.

Fred was in deep thoughts, something important had just occurred to him. Fred had never cared about people's wealth but some people did care about it.

Hermione's parents were rich that was easy to guess after visiting their house and he was thinking that Hermione's parents would probably not be thrilled about their relationship. He did not know them and it was bad to have prejudices but somehow he could not picture her parents coming to the Burrow for lunch on Sunday...

He was not ashamed of who he was and Hermione was clearly at ease when she was at the Burrow but he had never forgotten the way that her mother had been staring at him and George when they had come three years ago. It had not been the look of someone who would approve their relationship or accept the fact that her talented daughter was dating someone who had dropped out of school to open a joke shop.

Hermione was not easily influenced, she had proved that over the years but a part of Fred was happy to do not have Hermione's mother around, they had enough with his own mother. Of course, he wanted the Aurors to find her parents alive but he would be glad to have them back after the summer, once they would be in a real, steady relationship. He was mentally cursing himself for thinking like that but he had wanted Hermione for years, he did not want to lose her.

He had stopped listening to Hermione so when she asked him if he was ready, he simply nodded. He did not know what she was talking about though

Hermione raised an eyebrow, she had been about to ask him to repeat what she had just said but she did not want to argue with her boyfriend. She was anxious, Fred had the right to be nervous too, so she smiled and said :

« And behind that door, my room. »

...

She opened the door and stepped into what had been, a long time ago, her sanctuary.

In silence, Fred followed her inside. They were both expecting the room to have been turned upside down but it was exactly as Hermione had left it a year ago just like the rest of the house.

Fred observed the room, the walls painted in lilac, the shelves full of books, the small bed...

He walked around the room, asking Hermione a lot of questions. Some made her laugh, some made her uncomfortable. Among others, he asked why she had not vanished from the pictures.

« Muggle repellent charm. I did not want all of my life to vanish. I have barely spent time here over the last few years but my room is a part of me, where my muggle self and witch self used to connect. »

Fred then asked why she had never said that she was buying Hogwarts' yearbook each year, it was not something very popular. It would have been more popular if four yearbooks had been done, one for each house, indeed only few students wanted to buy a book with pictures of their school's enemies in it, but Dumbledore had always refused to make a yearbook per house, Hogwarts was one school, not four.

« My parents always asked me to buy it. I could not say no because that was all they had to understand what my life was, what Hogwarts was. Besides, my father was fascinated by the animated pictures. » explained Hermione who was trying to reply to Fred's questions with the most accurate answers as if it was a sort of exam.

Fred nodded and took the yearbook of 1995-1996, he had left school before he had the chance to see which pictures had been picked. He was looking for the seventh year pages, he was curious to see if his and George's pictures had been included as they had left school a few days after the pictures had been taken. He found the page with his picture easily as there was a blue bookmark in that page. He chuckled and asked Hermione if the bookmark had been left there for Roger Davies.

Hermione rolled her eyes and replied with a smirk that it was not there for Roger Davies but for George.

« Well George always says that he is the best looking twin. You should have asked him to sign it,» mocked Fred.

« Actually, I had thought about asking you to sign it but you had left school before I had got it but at least I have got pictures of you. I know that your mother has pictures from all the summers that I have spent with you and your family but it is not the same and I could not ask your mother to give me pictures of you, that would have been weird. » stated Hermione.

Fred laughed at the idea. He was surprised that his mother had not sent her pictures of Ron though. Hermione revealed that his mother did give her a few pictures of Ron, they were in a box with pictures of Harry and others with herself with her two best friends.

She sat on her bed and told Fred that she wanted pictures of him, of them together and that they should buy a camera. Fred agreed and while he was pursuing his inspection of Hermione's room, he confessed that he had stolen a picture of her and that the picture was hidden in his socks' drawer, in his room at the flat. Hermione was flattered and genuinely wondering how come nobody, except Luna, had ever guessed that they were in love with each other.

...

Fred had a look at a few books before to finally sit next to Hermione.

« It is really you, well organised, clean and with way too many books for a teenager, I love it. » he said with a grin on his face.

« Really me, yes I guess it does fit with the teenager that I used to be. » she said elusive.

Fred knew her very well, he knew that she was mentally blaming herself again. It was time to talk about something more cheerful.

« So are you going to tell me which one I should take? Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Alice in Wonderland? Both seem to be hiding one or two good ideas that we could work on to create new products. » said Fred enthusiastically.

She smiled and replied that he could take both. They exchanged a few ideas but soon the silence came back. Fred wanted to know what Hermione wanted to share with him but he was afraid to ask her directly. He did not want to make it more awkward than it already was.

Not that he was complaining about spending time with her at her house, he loved to spend time with her but he would rather be at a less gloomy place. He had the feeling to be disturbing the now forever frozen memories of this house.

He took the snow globe that was on her bedside table, it had caught his attention. He knew that Muggles loved those things but he had never really understood why. For him, it was just a crystal ball with something inside.

« If you push the button on the back, the ballerina moves to the sound of a delicate melody. » said Hermione.

Fred tried to make it work. He was looking like a kid who had got the wrong gift on Christmas day. Hermione laughed and told him that the battery was probably dead, Fred looked devastated while Hermione could not stop laughing.

« Don't worry, I have batteries on the first drawer of my bedside table. » she managed to say between two bursts of laughter.

As he was opening the drawer, she froze. She had just remembered what was in there too, above her V card. She did try to stop him, she had not planned it like that, she was the one who was supposed to open her drawer. Obviously, it was too late, Fred had already opened it and taken the batteries.

...

Fortunately for Hermione, Fred did not seem to care about the blue box. He probably did not know what they were anyway. She knew that they were absolutely not common use in the Wizarding world. Harry had once mentioned them in front of Ron. Ron had never heard of them before and after Harry had explained to him what they were, he looked disgusted.

Fred was more open minded but Hermione really hoped that he would not ask what those things were and not ask why she had them in her bedside table because that would be terribly embarrassing but this was Fred and of course he asked Hermione.

« Those are the batteries, I've seen some already, even bought once but just one silly question what's inside of this box? »

Hermione looked away and turned beetroot red. Fred could swear that he had never seen her that red before and he had seen her blushing a lot lately so that was saying something...

She mumbled something that he did not understand so he agitated the box under her nose and repeated his question.

She gulped before to raise her gaze to meet his hazel eyes. How was she going to explain him what they were without mentioning the elephant in the room? As she was still not replying, he opened the box that, he noticed, had already been opened and took one of the small shining packages out of the box, observing it with his eyes open widely.

Hermione sharply took the box out of his hand.

« It is a box of condoms. A condom is a Muggle contraceptive, it protects you from sexual diseases and also from getting pregnant. » she said at full speed without breathing.

She was observing Fred, he must had something to say, he always had...

...

part II should come soon, in the next two weeks

xx


	41. Chapter 35 part II

New chapter

sorry for the delay but here it is and beta-ed by WhenIAmCalling :)

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...

She was observing Fred, he must had something to say, he always had...

...

« Is it accurate?» he asked as he was trying to open the package.

Hermione was staring at her boyfriend, was this seriously his question? She had expected a quirky comment, not a real question.

She wished that one day Fred Weasley would actually blush or feel embarrassed to talk about something. She knew him well enough to know that his brain was already working on the information that she had just given to him and that he was looking for a way to make use of the info.

She took a deep breath and hesitated before answering. She was trying to remember the conversation that she had with her mother, when her mother had given her the box and all the instructions that she could need to use them properly. She really had the sensation of passing an exam...

« They say so. » she said shrugging

« And how is that supposed to work? » he was really curious to know

Ok, it was official, she wanted to disappear. The elephant in the room was becoming so big that she was expecting it to start flying and singing very soon.

She replied that she did not really know, she did not want to lie but her cheeks were already burning enough...

Unsatisfied with that answer Fred replied that she had to know as the box had been opened before. Fred was totally astonished, what was this box doing in Hermione's bedside table, he was dying to find out.

« I opened one, one day to see what it looked like. Truth be told my mother gave me the box and forced me to open one and it had been one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. Happy now?»

« Was it that terrible? Couldn't be more than having the talk with my father. I swear to God that nothing is more embarrassing than that talk, aren't you exaggerating? » he teased giggling

He was relieved to know that it was a gift from her mother but more question marks were popping into his head...

« It had been as terrible as this talk, I swear.» she answered looking away

Fred asked her when she had the talk with her mother. Hermione had always been so secretive about her life out of Hogwarts. Over the years, she had rarely spoken about her parents, her life and Fred only knew more now because they were dating.

« I was sixteen, it was after my fifth year during the summer break. My mum came back from work one day and gave me the box. She told me that she preferred to give me the talk at that moment since I was almost 17 years old and too often daydreaming. She said that it must be because of a boy. My mother always anticipated everything, I think that I have got that from her. » she said oddly

Fred impudently asked her who the guy was. If it was his little brother, it would be hard to swallow.

« You. » she said, rolling her eyes. Fred interpreted her gesture wrongly. He was believing that she was trying to tell him to mind his own business.

« What me? » he asked sharply.

« You. » repeated Hermione with her eyes wide open. What else could she say? She was wondering if Fred had suddenly become daft.

« Me what Hermione?»

« It was you bloody idiot, you are the answer to your question. For someone so perceptive you can be very mindless sometimes.» she cried turning crimson one more time.

She took another deep breath and looked at Fred again. She was being childish, there was nothing to be ashamed of. She could not be thinking about having sex and at the same being afraid to talk about it, it was illogical. They were adults and she had to act like one.

She smiled and told Fred that he could open the one that he had in his hand so she could explain to him better how it worked.

« What you feel under the paper is like a capsule made of latex or silicon that men have to put on, well you know where. It keeps the sperm instead of having it going into the women's vagina. Different sizes exist and apparently some are flavored. » she said in one go

Finally, Fred seemed speechless which was very uncommon. He opened the shining package and looked at the small piece of latex. He turned it upside down and stretched it grimly.

Hermione was observing him. Timidly, she asked him if something was wrong. She had told him practically everything that she could remember. He asked her if he could take the box. He told her that he wanted to show them to George to know his thoughts since they did not have anything like that.

«Sure, you can take it. You've never heard of condoms before then? » she asked desirous to get confirmation about that.

« Nope, we have spells and potions but nothing like that. Show that thing to someone like Malfoy or even my dad, they will tell you that there is no way on earth that they would ever use such a thing. Even someone like Neville or Lee or any of my brothers would never put it on. Except George but we, George and I are different. We own a joke shop and we have to be very open minded all the time. »

« Well they could be useful, they are very accurate you know. My mother gave me a full speech when she gave me the box. Actually, one of the things that I wanted to tell you was that I want us to brew the potion, you know to be prepared, just in case but perhaps we could simply use a condom. They expire like in 1999 and I don't think that it is going to take me that long to be ready. » she said with a genuine smile on her face

Her cheeks were no longer burning, she was trying to remain calm, after all they were just talking.

« Hermione, please remember something important, you have to pay for those things which means that you have to spend money if you want to have sex, it works for Muggles because they pay for everything but we have spells for free. » he reminded her gently.

She nodded, it made sense but it did not mean that they would not work. When she talked, again, about using them, Fred vigorously shook his head.

« We need to find someone to test them before to be sure that they also work for us. You know to be sure that our magical little soldiers don't find a way to escape from that euh thing so the answer is a no, you and I aren't going to test them ourselves. We should only rely on the potion, at least for now and Hermione, we don't have to brew it now, we can wait until you are ready.» insisted Fred

« I've never really thought about it under that angle though I can't see why it wouldn't work for wizards . » she started but Fred did not let her finish

« Because we are magical, you get pregnant tomorrow and your foetus will already be a magical human being. The degree of magic is different for muggle born, half blood and pure blood. Pure blood, we are magical from head to toes Hermione, I am not sure that all the little soldiers would get trapped in that, we are not going to test those condoms ourselves. If you had thought about it, forget it, I am not taking that risk.» he reaffirmed as he could feel that Hermione was going to argue.

« From a logical point of view, what you've just said does not make any sense Fred. Magical person or not, condoms have been conceived to keep the sperm in the deposit but I know what you mean and I have to agree with you. Now I feel like a fool for not even having thought about it before. » she conceded

« Well it is a good thing you are still a virgin then. » teased Fred

« You are being incredibly comforting. » she said offended

Fred cupped her face and apologized. He had not meant it like that. Hermione looked into his eyes, she said that she accepted his apology and then repeated that she really wanted them to brew the potion.

She shared her feelings with Fred. She told him that she was thinking about having sex with but at the same time she was still scared to be naked in front of him. Fred abstained from making any funny comment or saying that he would not have any problem of having her naked in front of him.

He kissed her forehead and said that he understood her position.

He promised to check if he had to buy some ingredients at the black market as they were planning to go on the following day. Satisfied, Hermione smiled. She stretched her arm and took the envelope that was still in the drawer. It was time to drop the big news.

...

She could still see the elephant in the room and she was certain that Fred could see it too.

Indeed Fred had seen the elephant, he was just waiting for Hermione to explain herself. Quickly, she gave him the envelope and mumbled an open it.

Fred had understood what was inside. He bit his lips to not laugh, he should have thought about it sooner. Hermione had been dropping clues for a few days now. He opened it with a smile on his face but the smile faded when he saw that his name was already written on it. Hermione had not come to her house for an entire year, how come his name was already written? She had probably written it two years ago. He sighed, they really had been two idiots...

« Look Fred as many teenage girls I had silly ideas. » started Hermione with a shaking voice

« Like having sex, I don't think it is silly. I would say it is normal. » stated Fred who was still looking oddly at the card.

« Like having my first time in my own bed. I have already confessed to you that I thought about doing it with you, Mister know-it-all. »

« This one was below the belt, you are becoming good at taking the mickey out of me»

She giggled and said that she had a good teacher which made Fred smirked.

« Touche but let's go back to our pumpkins. Hermione, I am gladly surprised to see my name on your card. You really did think about having sex with me before to even know if I like you then, because I first told at the wedding last year. Won Won is going to choke. » he said laughing

Hermione hit his shoulder with one of her pillows. Fred became serious again and said that he wanted to know how she had pictured it. Hermione reminded him that he had forbidden her to think about her what if. Moreover, she was not sure that sharing that with him would be a good idea. She did not want her old dream to influence the present. She did not want Fred to feel that their first time had to be like she had imagined it.

Fred did not insist and she thanked him for that. She asked him if he was going to sign her card or not and if he knew about the V card's folklore. It had been the purpose of their visit so she wanted to know. She had a plan to follow.

...

Fred knew what Andromeda had told her, no more, no less. Hermione was not always a huge fan of his mother's rules but for once she was glad to know that Molly had told her sons that they could only sign one V card and that they must take the one of a witch that they really cared about and loved. Who would have thought that the only one who had really followed the rules was Fred, certainly not their mother. Fred grinned, that was the proof that Fred needed to convince his mother that he was really in love with Hermione.

However, just like Hermione, Fred did not really believe in any of the myths so when Hermione asked if they should look for more information about it, he said that it was unnecessary. He stood up, took a pen that was on her desk and signed the card before giving it back to Hermione.

« Yesterday the unbreakable vow, today your V card. I hope that you are conscious that you have tied your life to mine forever, we just have to elope to fulfill the list » said Fred half joking, half serious

Hermione, who was still sitting on her bed, stared at Fred. A part of her wanted to say yes but that would be so irresponsible and reckless and absolutely not like something Hermione Granger would do.

The problem was that she knew that this was something that Fred could do and he would be proud of it.

She closed her eyes, shook her head and said that she did not want his mother to really murder them.

...

She reopened her eyes and bit her lips, it had been the second in a couple of days that Fred had talked marriage and she was starting to think that behind the joke, there might be some seriousness. The problem was that she had not clearly said no, indeed she had said yes the first time, it had been a hypothetical yes but still she had said yes. She wanted to marry Fred, one day, in a few years but not now.

If Fred popped the question, what would she do? Her eyes met his, she sighed, she would say yes, she knew it, indeed, she would not take the risk of losing him.

She had to control her emotions, yes she was in love with Fred but she had to be more careful, being in love did not mean becoming stupid, otherwise she would end up married before the end of the summer and she would probably not go back to Hogwarts.

She could not let that happen, she had to make Fred understand that they were too young to get married and she did not care about the fact that Wizards and Witches were getting married sooner than Muggles.

Fred had his dreams, she had hers and they had dreams in common and she was not going to give up on her dreams. Fred was obviously not forcing her to do anything, he was always letting her choose, she was the one who was always following him.

Finding the right balance was harder than she had imagined. Her mother was right, being in love was complicated.

Thoughtful, she replaced her card into her drawer. She was wondering what would happen after they had done it. Would they really have a sort of magical bond? She was dubious but magic had surprised her so many times over the last seven years so who knew what would happen. As long as it would not make her feel the urge to get married, she would be fine.

...

sorry if you were thinking that they would do it. Soon it will be but few things will happen before, one particular will be the one to make Hermione realize that she is ready.

next chapter in about 2 week


	42. Chapter 36

New chapter

Sorry for the delay, my beta is busy at the moment so this chapter has not been beta-ed. Any volunteer to beta-ed chapter 37/38 and 39 that are already ready to be sent?

Please send me a PM :)))

The beta will get all the answers before the others and know the two different possible ending :)))

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...

...

Friday 12th of June 1998

It was Friday again, the week had passed rapidly. Hermione was with Ginny and Luna. They were in Ginny's room. They were getting ready to go out with their boyfriens and friends.

It was the first time that they were going out, all together, and the first time that Hermione and Fred were going out as an official couple for everybody, his mother and Angelina Johnson included.

Yes, Molly and Fred had a long talk on Wednesday. He had told her that Hermione was the girl with whom he had been in love since he was seventeen. Molly had said that she was happy even though she was still processing the news. Indeed, she was still not sure that the two lovers were made for each other.

Her husband had told her that it was only because she had pictured, for too many years, Hermione with their youngest son. He was convinced that she just needed time to accept the new couple. Soon, she would start to, mentally, prepare another wedding, he was a 100% sure about it.

Molly was praying for her husband to be right but still there was something wrong with this relationship, something that she had not been able to figure out yet. She could not see them growing old together and it was bothering her.

...

...

Hermione and Fred had been so busy during the week that Hermione had not even realized yet that Friday was already there. She could not believe it, only one more week at the burrow.

She was chatting actively with Ginny and Luna. Or better said, she was answering their questions and the two young girls had a lot...

Ginny, who was a lot more experienced than her friends, made Hermione blushed several times.

Hermione did not want to give them too many details but at the same time she believed that the two girls could give her some tips to feel more comfortable about the idea of being intimate with Fred. Unfortunately, they did not help Hermione, quite the contrary actually. Both said that their first time had been quite awful. Ginny regretted to have done it with Dean while Luna regretted to do not have waited a bit more before to give her V card to Neville.

Just like Fred had predicted, Luna was starting to get tired of Neville. She needed adventures, not going for a walk... She had met Newt Scamander's grandson few days ago and she admitted, blushing, that she was looking forward to see him again and why not hang out with him. He had seen nargles so obvisouly Luna could not wait to spend time with him...

This comment made Hermione and Ginny laugh even if both were already sad for Neville who would certainly end up with a broken heart before the end of the summer.

...

Hermione hated the fact that Fred had been right. He was a prankster but he was also such a very good observer. It was so disconcerting, just like the fact that he seemed to have a lies' radar. always activated.

Fred had explained her that those qualities were required to become a good prankster but lately Fred was using them beyond the pranks' area too often.

Hermione was not a liar, neither did she have any reason to lie to her boyfriend but she was feeling so vulnerable when he was around. She knew that he was a not a legiliment, he just knew her very well. She wished that she could tell the same. Indeed, sometimes it was hard for her to anticipate Fred's reactions.

Very few persons had the power to really hurt her, Fred was definitely one of them. He could break her heart and even if Hermione knew that he would not, a part of her still had fears and those fears were probably the reason why she had not had sex with Fred yet.

Andromeda had told her several times that being in love meant taking risk and exposing your heart. This was exactly what she had been doing for the last five weeks but sometimes it was still hard to unbuild the walls that she had been building for years.

The transition from Hogwarts' bookworm to Fred's girlfriend was not easy...

...

...

Hermione was looking at herself in the mirror. She sighed and looked harder as if her reflection could help her to totally trust herself. Indeed, Fred was not the problem, she and her self esteem were. She shook her head and focused on her hair and make up.

...

...

She was almost done with her hair. It was too long but Fred had told her that he liked it when it was long besides it was less bushy when it was longer so Hermione had decided to let it grow until the end of the summer.

...

She was now thinking about everything that had happened during the week. The week had been productive. Hermione was extremely happy, she had been happy since Fred had awoken but her happiness had clearly reached another level. So many good things had happened in just few days.

She bit her lips, the roller coaster of her emotions was really indescribable. How could she feel happy and nervous at the same time, she had no clue...

She could remember the day that she had told Ron that he had the emotional range of a teaspoon while they were talking about Cho. If she could expose her feelings too Ron, she was wondering with what she would compare him this time, nothing better than a teaspoon that was for sure.

...

...

She was putting lipstick on, a red one, as she was mentally enumerating all the positive and less positive things that had happened since their trip to her house.

Fred had signed her V card. The trials had started and so many Death Eaters had already been sent to Azkaban. She had gone shopping with Andromeda, Harry and Fred to choose the furnitures for their bedrooms at Grimmauld place. She could not wait to move in even though she was a bit sad to leave the burrow. Andromeda had told them that they could move in the following week and Hermione had decided to wait until the end of the following week to leave the same day than Fred.

Fred was ready to move back to Diagon Alley, he was as excited as Hermione was, perhaps even more. And obviously saying that George was thrilled to have his twin back was an overstatement.

As for Diagon Alley, it was slowly getting back to the wonderful magical street that it used to be before the second war. The twins' shop was always crowded. Fred was working few hours there each morning, while Hermione was working at the Ministry, before to head back to the burrow for lunch with Hermione and spend his afternoons with her at the farm working on new products and looking for informations about time turners.

Also they had finally completed their research during the week. However, their quest was not totally done yet.

They had found a couple of useful books at the black market on Tuesday and they had gotten the confirmation that Fred was alive because of the spell that Hermione had used.

In one of the new books that they had found at the black market, different spells and even potions were listed to find out if a person saved during a trip to the past was supposed to be saved or not. Unfortunately, they had not need to use any of those as it was specified, at the bottom of the same page, that if the person had died and had been taken from Death's arms then it was obligatory an unwritten action. No one could resuscitate the Dead. They should have guessed, Dumbledore had told them countless times...

Hermione had been bothered by the fact that Dumbledore had encouraged her to go ahead. The twins had not been troubled. Dumbledore was an odd man after all and trying to understand his moves was a waste of time, even more now that he was just a soul into a painting.

...

In the same book, a list of spells, that were effective to save and protect a life for an unwritten action, was listed and the spell that Hermione had used was on top on the list. It was the most efficient spell. They had read the few lines that were written about it and had understood that as long as Hermione would love Fred, he could not die.

The book did not say much more about the spell but Hermione knew that Fred was the love of her life so she had told him that he had nothing to worry about.

Of course, they should look for concrete informations about the spell that Hermione had used and why it had become an illegal spell. To get them, they had no choice but to speak with Percy, they had agreed on that.

At the Ministry, Percy had access to many documents and if someone could easily find informations about that spell that was him. Besides, he was the only one, with George and Andromeda, who knew the all story.

...

...

Hermione was done with her make up. Actually, she was just wearing red lipstick. Her mother had always told her to choose between lips or eyes. Hermione prefered lipsticks over mascaras, so it was never hard to choose. When she was wearing lipstick, she was feeling like a woman and not like a girl.

In the meantime, she was still trying to deal with the fact that Fred would really have died if she had not gone back on time.

Finding out that he was supposed to die had been a hard one for Fred. Even if he had expected it, it did affect him a lot. He had almost not talked for two days. Hermione and George had to cooperate to make Fred speak and laugh again. Both had been in shock too but their feeling was different. Indeed, they were just thinking about the fact that the spell had worked and not about the fact that Fred should not be alive.

It had not affected her much at first but it was now. The thought of Fred dead was so dreadful.

She shook her head and sat on her bed, she had to stop thinking about it, Fred was alive.

...

...

Hermione was putting on her shoes, a light blue pair of sandals, that she had taken into her mother's closet when she had been at her house with Fred on Monday.

The roller coaster was still going strong. Indeed, she had completely forgotten about Ginny and Luna who were arguing over a red pair of stilettos.

She was not upset because of the conversation that they had with Percy even though her mind was stuck on what had happened the day before.

...

They had spoken with Percy the day before, Thursday.

Percy had promised to help them. He had, of course, reminded Hermione that she should not have used a spell without knowing its backstory. Just like George, he would always be grateful, she had saved their beloved brother but they knew that it would have consequences sooner or later.

Percy, more than George, was worried, a lot, about the line that was explaining that Hermione's love was protecting Fred's life. He did not doubt Hermione's love for his brother, nobody could as if she did not truly love Fred, the spell would not have worked but he was convinced that the sentence had a double meaning and that they had a lot more to find out.

The sentence in the book was so vague, Percy refused to believe that Fred would die only when Hermione would stopped loving him.

Hermione had answered to that one by saying that it must refer to her death as the ultimate possibility. Percy could not agree so he had kindly reminded her that dying did not mean to stop loving someone.

Fred and George were thinking like Hermione so they had a brief argument about it. Percy had to use Lily's love to make them understand his point. It had let them speechless and concerned.

...

What Percy had said about love made sense but did it mean that Fred had kind of become immortal. During their conversation, Hermione had remembered that when she had first read about the spell and discovered that it had become illegal, immortality had been the first thing that had come to her mind. It was astonishing but what if that were the truth?

Reaching immortality was not impossible in the wizarding world and a lot of wizards had, were still trying to become immortal but not Fred. He had told Hermione, during one of their talks at the hospital, that he would not want a life without the people that he loved.

Hermione had apologized for not knowing what she had done. Fred had laughed and told her that he would find a way to undo the immortality stuff and join her in the afterlife even though they had not got any confirmation of a possible immortality yet.

« But for now I think that we should just live our lives. We have been doing research for weeks. We have one more week to spend together at the burrow and I would love us to do something different. I know what you are thinking Hermione but we have got our answer and I do not wish to spend the rest of the summer or my life doing research. Besides, I've got the feeling that the more we will dig, the more we will find to make us dig deeper and this is not what I want. We are not in danger, nobody is so why don't we just enjoy life and let the war and everything that had happened behind us. » he had said gently as he did not want her to dig her heels in

Hermione had promised to stop her research as soon as Percy would have found out why the spell had become illegal. Fred had agreed with that before to kiss her tenderly.

For some reasons, Fred was tired of this endless hunt, Hermione could read it in his eyes. It would be hard for her to let that behind them but she also had to respect Fred's wishes. Besides, she had been the one who had said countless times that she wanted to enjoy life as an eighteen years old young adult, it was about time to start, was not it?

...

...

Hermione let herself fall onto her bed, she was done with her appearance but not with her thoughts.

The thought of this kiss had awoken the butterflies in her stomach.

Perhaps, she should say yes, really yes if Fred ever mentioned eloping or getting married. They were too young, she had not changed her opinion about that but perhaps getting married would help her to do not be that worried all the time...

...

...

Hermione glanced at the little black book that was on her bedside table. It was Fred's old diary and she could not wait to finish to read it. Fred had given to her his old diary on Tuesday. He had been writing in it since he had left Hogwarts. It was like a volume of thoughts that he had about her, them, during the last couple of years and Hermione was finding it really interesting and arousing. She would have never imagined that Fred had invented the patented daydream charm thanks to his dreams about her...

Thanks Merlin, the diary was protected by a charm so Ginny or Molly could not open it. Hermione would die of embarrassment if someone else ever read Fred's lines.

...

...

Ginny and Luna were almost ready. Hermione checked her watch, 7:15pm, they had still had 15 minutes before to leave.

She was going to wait for them to go downstairs. She did not want to take the risk to be alone with Molly.

Even if Molly had apologized to her, Hermione could tell that her relationship with Fred was, kind of, on probation. Another thing that would end if she accepted to marry Fred, maybe she really should...

...

Again sorry this chapter has not been beta-ed but I hope that you will like it


	43. Chapter 37

Here is a new chapter. I am sorry for the delay, at the beginning of the lockdown, about a month ago where I live in Europe, I thought that it would be the perfect moment to post more but truth be told I had, still am, facing a sort of mental blockage. The news have been so dreadful all around the world that I just could not post. I do really hope that all of you are safe.

elljayde welcome :)

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Amd finally sarahann02 welcome :)

This chapter has not been beta-ed and I am still looking for another beta so if there is any volunteer please send me a PM.

I hope you will like this chapter.

Xx

...

Wednesday 17th of June 1998

Hermione was waiting for the Minister, in his office. She was wondering what Kingsley wanted to tell her. It must be something important as he had sent her an owl at the burrow while she was having breakfast with the Weasleys and Harry.

A couple of weeks ago, he had told her that he had spoken with the Australian Minister and sent Aurors to Australia to find her parents and somehow Hermione was pretty sure that what he had to tell her had something to do with her parents.

Her life was so good and peaceful at the moment, it was just too good to be true.

Even if she was still preoccupied about the spell that she had used to save Fred and its consequences on their future together, Hermione had not been that happy in such a long time so she knew that at some point, she would have to cope with bad news again.

Loosing her parents, it would be terrible but it would not totally destroyed her, not with Fred by her side.

She was feeling loved and not just by Fred. Andromeda, Harry, Ginny, Luna and the Weasleys would help her, she would not have to face it alone.

And after all, it was not as if she had not played the scene a hundredth times in her head, Kingsley announcing her that the Aurors had found her parents, well their bodies. She had been preparing herself for this announcement since the day that kingsley had told her that Death Eaters had been looking for her parents, in Australia, maybe even before...

She sighed and looked at her watch, it was almost 1pm. She had been waiting for thirty minutes already, waiting was making her nervous besides Kingsley was never late.

She wished that she had Fred's diary with her, reading few pages would have helped her to relax. Well relax was not really the right term as each page was arousing her a bit more. Fred had really written his deepest thoughts into his little black book which included a lot of sexual content and Hermione could not stop wondering if she was really going to feel what Fred had described in his writings.

She had almost finished her reading and the closer she was coming to the end, the more intriguing and exciting it was becoming.

She had dared to ask Fred few questions. He had answered vaguely, with his mischievous smirk on his face as a bonus, that it would feel even better when they would do it for real.

And curiously all this was helping her to feel, more confident because she had got the proof that Fred really desired her physically as well.

...

She shook her head, how could she be thinking about something that silly as Fred's little black book or how pleasurable it would be to have sex when she was about to receive a very dreadful notice.

What is wrong with me, she thought horrified

...

...

Few minutes later,

She was getting tired of waiting but she could not live Kingsley office, his owl was clear, she had to wait for him. She was trying to think about something joyful, just joyful but it was not an easy task. However, she did let herself imagine what it would be to occupy this office, one day. Fred was calling her often Mrs the Minister of Magic and she kind of loved it. Becoming the Minister of Magic was such a wonderful goal and she had decided to secretly keep it in her mind.

...

...

About twenty minutes later Kingsley finally stepped into his office. He was looking serious and annoyed. Hermione told him that she could come back later. As Kingsley was spending a lot of time with Andromeda and baby Teddy at Grimmauld Place, Hermione and Harry were learning more and more about Kingsley and they were no longer seeing him as just a great Auror, a member of the Order or the Minister of Magic so it was becoming easy for them to break the ice with him.

Kingsley shook his head and told her to take a sit. She obeyed without saying a word, her blood temperature had dropped and her hands were as cold as ice. She was scared and wished, again, that Fred was with her to hear the news...

...

...

As she was leaving the Minister's office, she was smiling. She could not believe her luck. Her mother was alive and healthy. They had found her in Melbourne. She had been tortured by the Death Eaters but Hermione' spell had been really efficient. She had no memories of her beloved daughter. It should have affected her but Hermione did not care, her mother was alive and safe and that was beyond what she could have ever imagined.

As soon as her mother would have recovered her memories, she would be able to travel back to the UK. Hermione wanted to go to Australia to see her mother but Kingsley had informed her that it was impossible. Indeed, her mother had to remember Hermione before to see her, it was essential and the only way to erase all the traces of the memory spell that Hermione had used.

Kingsley had added that the memories of the heart had to be stronger than the memories of the brain. Hermione was not sure to have clearly understood all the meanings of this line but she had got the general idea. She was not worried, not even the slightest, her mother's heart would never forget about her, no spell was strong enough to break a mother's love.

However, there was a dark line into this happiness. The Aurors had not found her father yet. Kingsley was optimistic and said that the chance to find him alive were very high.

Hermione had thanked Kingsley and had done something that she had never done before, she had hugged Kingsley. Kingsley, surprised at first, had smiled and wrapped his arms around the young witch. Thanks to Andromeda, he was growing closer to Harry and Hermione and he could not wait to have dinner with the little family at Grimmauld Place on Friday evening.

He had forbidden himself to think further but a part of him wanted to get back with the woman that he was still thinking about as the love of his life. They could become a family, all together. Andromeda was already considering Hermione and Harry as her children, sort of, and Kingsley would loved to get as close as she was to the two young adults.

He was not too old to become a father but Andromeda was already a grandmother and he seriously doubted that she would ever consider having another child at almost 45.

He sighed and let Hermione go. Thoughtful, he watched her lived his office. Yes, he wanted to have a family, this family.

...

...

Hermione left the Ministry with a big smile on her face. Her mother was alive, she was missing her so much. She could not wait to have her back but she had to be patient. Kingsley had warned her, her mother could need months to recover her memories but again that did not matter.

She ran to the twins' shop, she could not wait to share the good news with Fred.

Later, she would share it with Harry and Andromeda. Nevertheless, she was afraid to tell them. During the war, they had lost everything they had. It was hard to say whom had lost more, Harry or Andromeda.

Hermione was starting, again, to feel bad about her luck. Life was unfair and she was hoping that she would not have to pay any price for those lucky days.

...

...

In the meantime,

Percy had just finished his lunch with his father, brothers, except the twins who were at their shop, and Harry when he finally found the courage to go to see Kingsley to complete his mission. He was the one in charge to get the dossier about the spell that Hermione had used and its order of illegality.

Fred had insisted that it had to be Percy and not his girlfriend. He had lied about his real motives and said that it would be too suspicious when he was just afraid that Hermione could find something that would put in jeopardy their relationship.

He had used a pitiful excuse but curiously nobody had disagreed. He had said that Hermione was not a real employee of the Ministry and less one of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement yet so it was too risky for her to investigate.

Kingsley would ask her why she needed to go to the archives of the department or worst as he could insist to escort her. Percy had to consult the archives so often that he just had to ask for the keys, nobody would find it dubious.

Nevertheless, Percy was nervous. He was not good at lying or breaking the rules even if he was not going to break any but still he was feeling bad. Why was he the only Weasley who had got that gene.

He had been postponing his mission for few days now but he knew that he could not delay it any longer as Hermione and Fred were becoming impatient. The day before, Hermione had mentioned several times that she could do it herself, if Percy could not get over his goody two shoes attitude.

An angry and worried Fred had cornered his brother and told him that it had to be done before the end of the week or he would find a way to get that bloody paper on his own, well with George's help of course. Again, Fred had insisted, Hermione could not be the one finding out first. Percy had never been scared of Fred or George but he did fear their anger and that was precisely why he was walking towards the Minister's office.

...

Percy was in front of Kingsley's office, the door was closed as always. He was not even sure if Kingsley was inside or not, maybe he would be lucky and find no one behind that door. He shook his head, he had to be braver, he was a Gryffindor not a wimp. He knocked at the door and waited patiently for Kingsley to say come in.

Percy was so nervous that when he heard the two words, he did not know if he had really heard them or if he had imagined it. Besides, he was pretty sure to have recognized Hermione's messy braid coming out of Kingsley's office as he was stepping out of the elevator and that was confusing him a bit more.

« Come in. » screamed Kingsley

This time Percy knew that he was not dreaming. He took a deep breath and open the door. As soon as he had stepped into the room, he had started to sweat, his hands were all sweaty and he did not like the sensation.

Kingsley's eyes narrowed. He offered a chair to Percy and asked to what did he owe a visit.

Percy repeated exactly what he had been preparing with the twins and Hermione over the last weekend.

« So basically you just want the keys. »

Percy nodded and Kingsley chuckled

« Why did not you just say so as you always do. Here are the keys but I would like to have them back tonight if you don't mind. You know with the trials a lot of people are coming in each day so I prefer to have the keys safe in my office. I know that I can trust you but I cannot let you keep them. » explained Kingsley who did not want to sound like a teacher or worst like Mrs Weasley

Percy said that he understood and promised to return the keys before to leave the Ministry. His mind was already trying to figure out how to find the damn dossier, take it to the shop and returning the dossier and the keys before 7pm. He had not anticipated Kingsley's request, not that he could have anyway but still, he was blaming himself for not thinking further and for accepting this suicide mission. He was not like the twins or Hermione who had all graduated with an outstanding at breaking the rules...

Moreover, Hermione was always with Fred on the afternoon, how was he supposed to give the dossier to Fred if she was there.

Fred and George had promised to arrange him a date with Audrey after all this, Percy tried to focused on the lovely little witch. He wanted that date and he wanted to help his brothers and future sister in law, he could do it.

He took the keys, stood and left the office followed by Kingsley. Surprised, he asked him where he was going.

Hesitantly, the Minister shared his plans of the afternoon with the redhead.

« I have some doubts in my mind after another questioning with Yaxley and I think that I know where to get my answer. » he said calmly

« He is still not saying anything. » asked Percy who knew that Kingsley and the Aurors were getting tired of Yaxley's little game

« No, nothing concrete but today he had mentioned something very interesting. »

« About what. » asked Percy dubiously

« McGonagall's time turner. It popped again today during the questioning and Yaxley laughed. He told me again that they had not taken that stupid time turner but unlike before he had added that if I still did not believe him then I should ask Dumbledore. I laughed, of course, as Dumbledore is dead but then I remembered that there is a painting of him into Professor McGonagall's office and I have to say that Yaxley is quite right, if Dumbledore had seen someone, he will tell me unless it is someone from our side, something that Yaxley had also suggested. I have been thinking about it for days too if I am totally honest with you. » admitted Kingsley

« Our side, you mean one of us. » asked Percy nervously.

Kingsley and his flair, it was almost as good as his mother's flair. Percy did not believe that the Minister would get anything from Dumbledore just like he knew that it was a question of days before Kingsley discovered the truth. Percy thought that he was going to faint, he really had to run to the shop.

He was barely listening to Kingsley who was still speaking.

« Yes, Yaxley also suggested that. As I've said, I am not looking for that time turner anymore but I cannot help it, something is telling me that it is the key and I think that I have figured out what Dolohov, Rookwood and Lestrange are running after, how and why. Yaxley is becoming tired and his answers are becoming more and more helpful even if he is not openly giving me the answers but still, I think that I am finally going somewhere and I hope that those three morons as Fred called them do not know who has got that time turner because if they do, this person is in grave danger. » finished Kingsley who did not reveal why that person was in grave danger and Percy afraid to look too curious did not dare to ask

Percy gulped. He had to warn Fred and Hermione but first he had to stop by the archives of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

He excused himself and left but before he could reach the elevator Kingsley had called him back

« Percy please send an owl to Mr Lovegood, it is about time to get his little piece of art, his special time turner. »

« You think that this what they are after. » asked Percy confused

Kingsley nodded and finally let Percy leave.

In the elevator, Percy pressed his head against the wall. He should have thought about it, he had been stupid. Hermione was in danger and so was his brother, well if Kingsley was right, they all were in danger.

...

I am going to try to post the next chapter before the end of the month but I guess it will depend on how the news are going as when they are really bad as they had been the last few weeks, I just don't feel like posting.

Again, I hope that all of you are safe.

xx


	44. Chapter 38

New chapter,

So here is chapter 38 and again if there is any volunteer to beta the last chapters please send me a PM.  
I am not sure how many chapters we are going to have before the end of the story. The story has two possible ways to end and I am not sure which one I am going to pick. Anyway, almost 200 hundred followers, I am really happy about it and I hope that you are going to like what is going to happen.

Robyn7183 welcome :)

momma2011 welcome :)

Charlwall welcome :)

Asthetic . vibe .girl welcome :)

And finally for this week mirandaadele1996 welcome :)

xx

...

...

Percy was in the archives, he was looking for the precious dossier. He was terribly nervous and he could not stop to glance at the door. If he did not want to be caught by Kingsley, he had to find a way to replace the dossier before 6pm maximum. He had a look at his watch, he did not have much time left.

All this pressure was disturbing him. He could not think straight. Things would have been so much easier if Hermione could have come. Deep down, he knew that Fred was right and that it would have been a very bad idea but still, the thought was there...

...

He, first, had to consult the register of all the illegal spells before to know exactly where to look. All the dossiers were ordered by chronological order but unfortunately Percy had forgotten when Hermione had said that the spell that she had used had become illegal.

He had been in the archives often but he had never fully realized how many illegal spells existed. Hundredths of dossiers were in this room.

Percy was imagining his brothers walking around the alleys. Fred and George, in this room, would be in paradise, sort of, and they would, for sure study, all the spells. After that, they would create an encyclopedia of illegal spells, to sell it at a very expensive price, at the black market or under another name at the shop and yes it would be a huge success.

Percy could picture the damages too, like his brothers being sent to Azkaban so he came to the conclusion that Fred and George could never come to this room together. He did not want their mother to accuse him of anything or hold him as the responsible for Fred and George's arrests. He already had enough to cope with for a lifetime besides he was still feeling too guilty to risk anything. Yes, he was taking risks for his brother and Hermione in that moment but this particular case was different, Hermione was the responsible for this mess not him.

...

It was almost 4pm when he had finally found it. When he had found the spell in the register, he had been surprised as he was quite sure that Hermione had given a date previous to 1917.

He looked again and noticed that the spell had been first decreed as illegal in the 19th century but the act of illegality had not been stamped before 1917. Apparently, it had been used too much during WW I and the Wizengamot had urged the Minister of that time to sign the act.

For Percy that sounded very familiar, women who had wanted to protect their men from dying just like Hermione had taken huge risks to save his brother.

He had always been a huge admirer of Hermione and he was glad that she was dating Fred. Maybe, she would be able to tame Fred's hot temper. Yes, dreaming was a free luxury and one of Percy's favorite hobby.

He shook his head, it was not the time to start daydreaming, he was in a hurry.

...

...

He briefly had a look at the 10 pages before to take the dossier to his small office. He had gulped and his eyes had narrowed, Fred had been right all along and so had Hermione. Fred's fate had been sealed the moment that Hermione had casted the spell.

It did not look that problematic though but to be sure he had to show it to Fred first as only Fred would know how much time left he had got. Percy wanted to read and study the text. He wanted to be sure that there was nothing written between the lines and that it was not dangerous but he could not, at least not now. He did not have enough time.

...

Percy left the archives with several dossiers under his arm. If someone saw him or asked him what he had been doing, they would find it suspicious to see that he had taken only one dossier out of the archives. Besides, this particular one was out of all the lists that Kingsley had named as possible threats so Percy knew that he had to be precocious.

Indeed, he had been quite sure that a sort of alarm would start to strike as soon as he would cross the door but nothing happened.

Relieved, he walked back as normally as he could to his office.

...

...

Percy was looking at the 10 pages that were on his desk. The spell had changed his brother's life and somehow Hermione's life too, forever.

Thoughtful, he was wondering what Hermione would have chosen if she had known everything about the spell. Yes, some might find the clauses romantic like that twat of Lavender Brown but Hermione certainly would not like them, no matter what Fred's wishes might be...

Hermione had wanted to save Fred because she was in love with him however it had been a selfless act, she had never done it to tie up Fred.

Fortunately, Fred would not accuse Hermione of anything or be vengeful because she was the only thing that Fred thought that he would never have.

...

Percy was chewing his lips nervously as he was thinking about what Fred's seven wishes could be and how long it would take him to make them real. The fear to loose his brother soon was back. Nothing was written about how many time the wizard had left once his seventh wish had become a reality, it was just written that the spell was broken after that. What did that really mean, he had no idea and he had no way to find out, neither would Hermione, Fred and George.

It was so vague, too vague for Percy whose pulse was already playing a speedy symphony in his ears. How were they suppose to live with that, how was Fred going to hide the truth from Hermione.

So many questions were left dangling.

...

...

About 20min later

The dossier was still laying on his desk while Percy was pacing in his small office thinking about what to do.

He could not take the complete dossier to the shop. Hermione would be there for sure and she could not see it.

Percy did not want to be hold for responsible for anything. Hermione would find out someday. He knew that she would but then she would be the one deciding what she should do.

Would she try to defy fate again or accept it, that would be her decision to take and Percy did not want to witness it or help her to find out. Also there was something else that was bothering him. He had taken the dossier out of the archives without any problem but he seriously doubted that he would be able to take it outside the walls of the Ministry.

He sighed deeply and sat on his chair. He observed the pages for five long minutes. He had a lot of ideas but in all the scenarios, he could foresee Hermione's doubts. He knew that she had not liked to be put aside and that she would be suspicious no matter which option he would choose.

He took the dossier and hide the pages 3 from 8 into one of his drawers. Hermione and Fred wanted to see the act of illegality well that was what Percy was going to show them and once Hermione would not be with Fred, he would tell Fred the truth and show him the rest of the pages or not. Indeed, he was still unsure about telling the all truth to Fred. May be, it would be wiser to keep it for himself and let Fred live his life fully.

On the other hand, if he decided to tell the all truth to Fred, it could help Fred to live longer. Fred could have a better control over the situation and delay some of his wishes. Percy sighed, the burden on Fred's shoulders would be heavy but the burden on his own shoulders would be worst. He had to be honest with his little brother.

Convinced that this choice was the best of all his options, he stood up and left his office and the Ministry while he was thinking about a way to get Fred, alone or with George, to the Ministry.

Finding an excuse to force Fred and George to come to the Ministry would not be a complicated task. Percy knew that Kingsley had signed the approval of the commercialization of a bunch of new products so the twins would have to come in the next few days to pick up the new licenses but how were they going to keep Hermione out of this one that was the real question.

...

...

In the meantime

Hermione was with the twins at the shop. They were in the backroom working on the last samples of the no polyjuice needed kit. They were also working on a polyjuice's counteractant.

The Aurors and Kingsley were afraid that some people could try to penetrate into the Ministry, like the trio had done, to get informations about the trials so Kingsley had ordered Fred and George to work on that.

Snape knew how to do it but his belongings had disappeared. The Aurors and Kingsley had found nothing more that few notes in the headmaster's office and his dungeon which was making them think that the formula could have fallen into the wrong hands.

The twins had gladly accepted the offer. It would not be easy but Kingsley had promised them something even more valuable than money, if they succeeded, the title of Potions' Master which was more than they could have ever dreamed of.

...

They were chatting and laughing, with Fred being the happiest of the three. Indeed, it looked like George and Hermione had really buried the hatchet and accepted the presence of the other.

Fred was joking about how cute they were all looking in their magenta robes when Percy knocked at the door. The three young adults looked at each other's, they all knew what a visit from Percy in the middle of the afternoon meant, he must had found the act of illegality.

...

...

Percy made his best to look calm and serene though his shirt under his vest was totally wet.

He took a sit and explained what had happened, everything that had happened which included the talk that he had with Kingsley.

« And well there is something else, Kingsley is afraid that the Death Eaters on the run might be after not just McGonagall's time turner but Mr Lovegood' special time turner too. As I've already told you weeks ago Hermione, I do not know much about this special time turner but what I know is that it is able to detect and define when was the last time that a time turner had been in use. Actually, Kingsley said that it showed the scene. How, I don't know but I am started to think. » started Percy before to be interrupted by Hermione whose mind was racing.

« That it could be through a memory like a pensieve. Mr Lovegood's time turner shows or worst, what if it could bring you back to the starting point. One of our books mentioned those very rare and precious time turners. The Death Eaters had taken Luna, they had trapped Mr Lovegood, I am sure that they know about his special time turner. » gasped Hermione who had turned white

« If what you think is right, it means that it does make you travel back so the Death Eaters could travel back to the 2nd of May with McGonagall's time turner. Hermione, it also means that Rookwood did see you. » pursued Fred whose voice was shaking

« And this could be true because Kingsley had told you Percy that whoever had taken the time turner, that person was in grave danger. Bloody hell, what are we going to do. » finished George who was as astounded and petrified as the others.

They would have never thought that something like that was possible. The situation was worst than what they could have ever imagined. They weren't even sure that they were pointing the right issue but if they were, they had to react and quickly.

...

...

It bothered and stressed Hermione so much that she did not even ask more about what Percy had found in the dossier. She did not care about the damn paper anymore. Kingsley would discover the truth, she was positive about it and she could loose her wand or worst, she could loose Fred so yes the act of illegality was the last of her problems.

As for the Death Eaters who could be after her, well that was not worrying her that much, she was used to it.

All she could think about was Mr Lovegood's time turner and what could happen to them.

...

The young men tried to calm her down but it did not work. They had never seen Hermione that scared before. She even said that she was ready to confess what she had done and loose her wand as long as they would not do anything to Fred.

« I won't loose you Fred, I won't. » she said firmly

« You won't but you aren't going to confess either. At least not yet, we need to think of a plan first. Hermione, I forbid you to run to Kingsley's office, are we clear. » insisted Fred who was certain that Hermione was overreacting because she did not want to disappoint Kingsley. George was with Fred, of course.

Hermione was wining Kingsley's affection, she needed a paternal figure and Fred knew that Hermione was picturing Andromeda and Kingsley as alternative parents. She had even confessed that she had spoken with Harry and that both would love to see them as a couple...

...

Hermione nodded though her mind was still working at full speed about what could they plan and how. For her, the best option would be to confess even though she did agree to listen the twins' ideas.

As for Percy, he, obviously, agreed with Hermione and firmly believed that it was time to confess which had made Fred glared at him.

« Look, Dumbledore is not going to tell Kingsley that you had taken the time turner. Come on, we know the old man, he would never betray you. It gives us enough time to think about something. » said Fred before to pause to look for the right words to expose his idea.

He had already mentioned a couple of times that they needed to get rid of the time turner but this time he was really serious. They had to do it and he was trying hard to convince the others to accept to do it.

« I know that you are scared about the idea of destroying the time turner but the books specified that your spell does protect me even if my come back was not written. We have to destroy this time turner as soon as possible so the morons can't go back and nobody will ever know what you've done. Without proof, theories stay theories. » insisted Fred

« But Fred what if it does kill you too, what if the books aren't right. » argued Hermione

« Books are always right, aren't they. Come on Perfect Prefect, it is not the time to start to mistrust your best friends and I am not talking about SuperBoy and our little brother but your real best pals.» scolded George who assumed that Fred was right. They had to do it.

Hurt, Hermione glared at him and argued back as coldly as she could. She was disappointed, in this battle George was supposed to be her ally to protect Fred.

« Hermione, I am not against you. Do you think that I want to loose my twin, my other half. I don't but I do believe in the power of the spell and I do believe that with the morons looking for the time turner and Kingsley looking for the truth, we are putting ourselves, specially Fred in graver danger. Have faith in the spell that you had used just like you had faith when you had run to McGonagall's office » replied George gently this time

For Hermione's despair Percy, who had changed his mind, pushed in that direction too. She had no choice but to agree with them though she affirmed that they would destroy it only when they would know how to control the curse fire properly.

Fred smiled and agreed under one condition, Hermione had to give him the time turner. They argued for a while. Percy left before the end of the argument, he had to go back to the Ministry and replace the dossier even though he really wanted to know who had won the fight.

...

...

Later, when Hermione and Fred went to the Ministry to have a look at the act of illegality. Percy learnt that Fred had won. The time turner was hidden somewhere, Percy did not ask more, he trusted his brothers and Hermione. If they had said that it was safely hidden then it was.

He let the lovers studied the piece of paper and when Fred looked at him, he did not forget to scratch his nose, an old code that they were using when they were kids. They used that code when they could not speak but wanted to make understand their siblings that they had something to say. Fred blinked and smiled at his brother. He was grateful and very happy to have Percy back at their side.

As they were ready to leave Percy's office, Fred thanked his brother again, then he took Hermione's hand, they were officially done with their quest.

Yet, Fred was curious and worried about what Percy had discovered but he had promised himself to live his life and for the time being, he had something better to do than ruffling the pages of an old dossier. Indeed, demonstrating to Hermione that his fingers could be very useful and not just to concoct potions was a much better prospect.

...

Basically everything that is going to happen in the next chapters, well clues are given in this one. Where I live, lockdown ends in two weeks, so I will be back to work and a kind of normal life on the 11th if may, until then I will try to post at least the next chapter, two maximum.

Xx


	45. Chapter 39

Here is the new chapter

Next chapter, not this one, is the cliffhanger of the story and I still do not know where to end my fic. I think, I am going to choose the short version with a long epilogue, plus few chapters that are going to be those missing moments between the end and the epilogue.

a broken soul needs healing welcome :)

and rypecanha welcome :)

Xx

...

Friday 19th of June, 1998

Andromeda was in the kitchen finishing her breakfast, while Teddy was still asleep. She was reading the letter that she had got from Teddy's healer. His treatment would start in few days, just before the new moon, a new cycle. She had forbidden Harry to pay for Teddy's treatment but Harry being Harry, he had gone to St Mungo and paid for the treatment for the first year. When she had learned what he had done, she did thank him and reprimand him too just like a mother would have done which had made smiled Harry.

With Hermione, they had told Andromeda many times that she was offering them something so much more valuable than money. Indeed, she was offering them a home, a family and after Harry had repeated those words again that day, Andromeda had broken into tears and hugged him tightly because the two young adults were definitely giving her a new family too.

And it was finally the day to start their new lives, all together at Grimmauld Place. She was beyond excited to have them finally moving in.

Of course, she was well aware of the fact that Hermione's stay would certainly be short. With her mother being alive, her relationship with Fred and her return to Hogwarts at the end of August, Andromeda seriously doubted that the young witch would spend more than a summer in this house.

It was saddening her but she could not feel reflective or sad already, after all Hermione had not even properly moved in yet.

She wanted to give them what they needed and be good for them. She had many up and downs with her own daughter. A part of her regretted the fights that they had about Tonks's relationship with Remus. She was trying to be more helpful and supportive than judgmental with Harry and Hermione than she had been with her daughter.

...

...

She was so absorbed in her reading and thoughts that she had not heard Kingsley stepping out of the fireplace of the living room.

It was still early, Kreacher was gone to buy food and she was not expecting anybody before the afternoon, when Hermione and Harry would come to start moving in their things and organize their bedrooms.

...

All the big furnitures had already arrived, safely, thanks to Charlie and Arthur Weasley who had went to the Muggle's stores to pick them up and drove them to Grimmauld Place. Charlie was the only one who had a real Muggle driving licensing. As for Mr Weasley, well, his fascination for all sort Muggle's stuff had been stirred up by the word Ikea. Back to Grimmauld Place, he had even tried to assemble the beds without magic and it had obvisouly been a complete fiasco. They all had a good laugh though, specially the twins and Charlie.

...

The, now, frequent laughters that were resonating inside the house were overwhelming and definitely soul-stirring too.

It finally seemed like grieving was coming to an end even though the pain would last forever.

...

...

Andromeda finished to read the letter and only raised her gaze when Kingsley cleared his throat.

She smiled at her oldest friend and told him to take a sit.

She stood up to make more tea. She was glad to have him back in her life. It was nice to still have someone around who had known her since forever. They knew each other's so well, their connection was so deep that she was regretting to have lost contact with him for some years after getting married.

...

She was observing him and she noticed that he looked annoyed. Kindly, she asked him what was bothering him.

She had a pretty good idea of what it could be as Hermione had not kept secret what Percy had told them a couple of days before. Neither did Hermione have forgotten to explain what they were believing, a connection between the Death Eaters and the time turners.

Kingsley sighed deeply and told her that he did not know where to start.

She sat next to him, placed a hand on his shoulder and with a delicate smile suggested him to start from the beginning.

« I went to see Dumbledore, well his painting at Hogwarts, the one in Minerva's office. » dropped Kingsley who was still avoiding Andromeda's gaze.

She had made him promised, about nearly two weeks ago, to stop looking for that time turner and he did not want to fight with her or disappoint her but the doubts were consuming him.

He had to find out what had happened, he had to be sure that the plan of the Death Eaters on the run was not the one that he was thinking about.

...

Just like he had been afraid of while speaking, Andromeda pulled apart and asked him angrily if his visit to Dumbledore meant what she was thinking. Kingsley could be so stubborn, she should have known that he would not listen to her.

« It does Dromy. Yaxley is driving me mad but he had said something between the lines and I am just trying to protect whoever has taken the time turner. Please believe me, it has nothing to do with my personal hunt. » he affirmed while hoping that Andromeda would not argue with him

« What did he say. Kingsley talk to me please. You are scaring me. » replied a very worried Andromeda

She had to know what he had discovered to inform Hermione. She was so scared for the young witch that she cared about so much. Fred was right, destroying the time turner was the safest, and wisest, option. Andromeda took a mouthful of tea to do not sigh, she had to find a way to convince Hermione to destroy the time turner.

She looked into Kingsley's eyes, he would not lie to her, she trusted him.

Also, she had been rather surprised to hear Kingsley called her Dromy. Her sisters, parents and Kingsley were the only one who did use this nickname when she was younger. She had not heard her old nickname for more than twenty years. She had never mentioned it to anyone, not even her late husband.

Her heart had missed few beats and if she had not been so worried about Hermione, the time turner and this never ending story, she would have certainly blushed.

...

A bit taken aback by her reaction Kingsley wondered for few seconds if she could have forgotten to tell him something. She had lost everything during the war, she had no reason to be linked to that time turner episode unless... He closed his eyes, he needed proofs before to expose his deepest thoughts.

« Well, I thought, no I was, had been, convinced for weeks that they were not after Minerva's time turner, after finding out that it was just a regular 5 hours back. I thought that it was useless. »

« Isn't it. » interrupted Andromeda who was trying to look as confused as when Hermione had told her everything

« It is unless you get a special time turner like the one that does possess Mr Lovegood. » he stopped and plunged, again, his gaze into Andromeda's blue eyes where he could still read fears though he had no idea why.

...

...

He explained her in details how the special time turner of Mr Lovegood worked and why they had to use this special one to verify each time turner. Andromeda was listening carefully in case Hermione and the boys had missed something about its mechanism. Obviously, they had guessed correctly.

«And just like that Minerva's time turner becomes the most dangerous time turner in this country. » growled Kingsley

«If it had been used on the 2nd of May, which you still had no proof about. » reminded Andromeda before to carry on

«Besides, how could the Death Eaters know about it and know who had taken the time turner and know about Mr Lovegood's special time turner. I understand your concern but I think that you are reading too much into Yaxley's words. » finished Andromeda who was still trying to hide her awkwardness

Having this conversation for the second time was not easy.

...

Kingsley shook his head and confirmed that the Death Eaters, well Dolohov, Greyback and Lestrange knew about the special time turner. After the Aurors' raid at Malfoy's manor, they had found a list of valuable artifacts that Voldemort wanted and the special time turner was on this list. Dolohov, Greyback and Lestrange had been the ones in charge of finding those artifacts.

« But still Kingsley how could they possibly know that someone had used Minerva's time turner during the battle. » she asked even though she knew the answer, Rookwood must have seen Hermione.

Hermione, the boys and herself had already come to this conclusion.

Fortunately, Kingsley did not seem to have the answer which briefly calmed down Andromeda. He had gone to Hogwarts hoping to get it but his plan had failed. He reported to Andromeda the conversation that he had with Dumbledore. Dumbledore had served him one of his speeches about love, trust and friendship.

«Something that he would not have done, if one of the Death Eaters or any of Voldemort's supporters would have taken the time turner that night. » affirmed Kingsley

...

Both did not say a word for a couple of minutes.

Andromeda spoke first, she had to if she did not want to awoken Kingsley's radar. She asked him if he had idea of whom could have taken the time turner.

He, again, shook his head and confessed that he had a list of potential suspects but nothing clear yet. Neither did he mention that Harry, Ron and Hermione were on top of this list, after all Harry had come back from the dead, had not he?!

Andromeda raised an eyebrow and asked him what that yet meant. He chuckled before to answer

« Well, I am just working on few theories. And actually, Dromy, I have to go. Thanks for listening to me. I am sorry for coming to you but I had missed you so much and I can trust you. I can't tell you how much it means to me to have you back in my life. »

« I am glad to say that I feel the same. Kingsley, one last thing before you leave. »

Dubious, Kingsley was observing her, waiting for that one last thing.

« You know that you are an amazing Minister and even if I did not approve this personal hunt of yours, I reckon now that you have to go on but please when you will find who had used the time turner and why, please be human. » she scolded gently

« You think that Dumbledore did not tell me because he still sees me as the too rational boy. » answered an offended Kingsley. He was not like that anymore.

She nodded with a weak smile on her face. Kingsley nodded too though he did not say a word. He stepped into the chimney and vanished into the green flames. He was hurt but he knew where Andromeda's comment was coming from. However, he had changed and he was going to prove that to her.

...

...

Few hours later

Hermione, Harry, Ron, Ginny and the twins were back at the burrow for lunch. They were all going to help Harry and Hermione to move out of the burrow. It had surprised everybody when Ron had said that he would help them. Indeed, and for Harry's despair, Ron's relationship with Hermione and Fred had not really improved over the last few weeks.

They were no longer fighting and it was true that the tension had vanished. Harry and most of the Weasleys had believed, at first, that Ron would come around and apologize but he had not, neither had Hermione tried to make peace. As for Fred, they had not expected him to make the first move as he had said loud and clear several times that he had nothing to be sorry about.

Anyway, Hermione was busy with the twins and Ron was busy with the Aurors and Lavender. They were barely at the burrow except for dinner and to sleep so they had no time to fight.

Harry could tell that Hermione was still sad to have lost Ron but she had stopped to care. When he had asked her why, she had answered, quite evasively, that she had more important things on her mind. Harry was worrying about what she had involved herself into this time. Whenever, he was trying to question her, they were interrupted by someone. Hopefully, moving to Grimmauld Place, a quieter place would help him to find out.

...

Truthfully, Harry was still hoping that Hermione and Ron were just ignoring each other's even if it did not look like that at all. Indeed, Hermione and Ron were openly avoiding to be left alone in the same room.

So yes, it had surprised him, a lot, when Ron had said that he was going to help them. Harry was hoping to do not have to witness any skirmish. Ron was quite capable of having decided to come to satisfy his needs of quarrel.

Of course, he was moving out too, it was not just Hermione and Ron certainly did want to help him, his other best friend, his only real best friend like he had started to say few weeks back.

Harry sighed deeply.

He sat between his two best friends thoughtful. He really did not want this afternoon to end into another warfare. He was missing hanging out with both of them, at the same time. He had tried to smooth things between them but it had not worked. Harry was afraid that the friendship between Ron and Hermione might have really been permanently damaged after their last fight at the end of May and Ginny had agreed on that...

Also, he could not say why but he was feeling guilty for letting Audrey, Alicia and Charlie going alone, again, to the black market. Not that Audrey, Alicia and Charlie needed his help but he was having a bad feeling about this trip.

Mrs Weasley's voice called him back to earth. He accepted the plate with a smile and joined his friends' conversation.

...

...

For this last lunch, Mrs Weasley had prepared Harry's and Hermione's favorite plates. She was going to miss them so much. She had been quite hurt when she had learnt that they had jumped on Andromeda's offer but weeks had passed and now she was understanding their motives better.

They needed to go on with their lives, just like the rest of them and staying at the burrow forever would not help them to make any progress. Besides, the fact that both were dating a Weasley was making things weirder and moving out was certainly the best way to defuse the tension.

However, like the rest of the family, or perhaps more than them, she was still not over what was looking like the end of the friendship between Ron and Hermione.

At least, she had become more supportive of the relationship between Fred and Hermione and the couple was satisfied with that for the time being.

...

...

Few hours later

Ron went upstairs to help Fred with the last box of books. Everybody else was gone. They were alone at the burrow and Ron was mentally preparing his speech. Hopefully, Fred would hear him out.

He knocked at the door and cleared his throat. Fred turned, wondering who was stupid enough to knock in that moment. Well, he knew who it was and his annoyance grew when he saw his little brother at the door.

Fred asked Ron, as nicely, as he could if he had come to help him or to stare at him.

Ron looked at his brother and answered nervously that he had come to help and to apologize.

Fred chuckled, he must have misunderstood.

« Fred, I am serious. I am sorry, I have been acting like a git. I overreacted but it hurt you know, seeing the girl that I loved, still love, with not just another bloke but with my big brother. You always get everything that you want, you don't know what it feels like to be the the third wheel. » explained Ron

Unfortunately, it had sounded more like a complain and Fred was rolling his eyes

« You are wrong, I do. I had been in your shoes Ron when I thought that she was in love with you. I have been pining for years too. My feelings for her aren't exactly knew and you know why I did not make a move at first, because of you and because I never thought that she could love me back or that I could be good enough for her. And that's just speaking about Hermione, I am not going to comment anything else about having everything I want because we both know that it is not true. » replied Fred before to pause for few seconds.

«Ron, please don't play the victim here. You got your heart broken, I got mine broken too. At some point in our lives, we all get a broken heart. » said Fred who had chosen to play it cool, a fight was not needed and Ron's intentions seemed pure

« I know and I understood that you had suffered too and that you do are in love with Hermione but that did not exactly help to make the pain go away Fred. I have Lavender and I like her a lot, I want things to work with her but seeing you two, together, it is going to hurt for a while and , and » said Ron while looking at his feet

« Ron, stop tiptoeing please. » sighed Fred who did not want to listen to his little brother rambling

« I am not but. Never mind. I just came to say that I am sorry. You are my brother and I love you and I can see how happy she is with you so hum what I am trying to say is, don't break her heart or I kill you. »

« This is the weirdest apology that I have ever heard but I do accept it, I guess. » chuckled Fred who accepted the hand that his brother was offering

« So we good. » asked a confused Ron after shaking hands with Fred

« We do but Ron, you need to talk to Hermione and apologize to her as well. You had hurt her and she had not deserved what you have put her through. » insisted Fred

« I will but I need time, a bit more. I don't want to make a fool of myself or fight with her again. I will make it right once I will be ready to face her which I am not yet. » confessed Ron who had turned red

« Don't wait too long, talk to her. » encouraged Fred with a smile. Being compassionate was not Fred's thing but Ron was clearly making an effort, so Fred could make effort too.

Ron simply nodded and then silent fell over the room.

...

Uncomfortable, Fred took the last box and told Ron that he was going to take care of this last box. It was Hermione's and as she was waiting for him at Grimmauld Place, it just made sense. Ron agreed and not knowing what to add, he said that he was going to pay a visit to Lavender.

« So, I guess that this is it little brother. See you on Sunday. » said Fred cheerfully.

For the first time in weeks, he had a normal conversation with his brother and none of them had yelled at the other. Things with Ron were back to normal for him until their next fight...

« Yeah see you on Sunday. Can't believe, I am going to be alone here with just the parents and Ginny. Bloody hell, this is gonna be weird. » said Ron oddly

« Sod off, we both know that you are happy to see us moving out for good and have all the attention of our parents. Enjoy Ronnie. » winked Fred as he was walking out of the room.

...

Ron looked at the almost empty room. The twins' beds, a desk and their old cabinet were the only furnitures that would stay at the burrow. Ron felt a hint of nostalgia, he should have apologized sooner. He was going to miss the twins. Even though, he had not lived with them for some time, this time it was farewell, this time they had left to do not come back just like Hermione and Harry had done.

Six weeks after the final battle, they had turned a new page and Ron knew that he had really lost his chance to be with Hermione but like he had said, he was learning how to cope with it.

...

...

For some time, I did not really know what to do with this chapter as the first part is basically a re told of what happened in the last chapter but the relationship Andromeda/Kingsley is really important in this story and Kingsley's point of view was also needed for you to read to understand next chapter better.

Yes, in the next chapter, truth is out but without Hermione confessing and as the main chapter is focused on Kingsley, Percy, Audrey and Charlie, I could not not post this chapter. I would love to read your thoughts about what will happen in the next chapter

Xx


	46. Chapter 40

New chapter

Finally, it looks like the situation is getting better in many countries. I hope that you are all safe and healthy. We are all dealing with this lockdown and it is hard. Hopefully, we can all go back to our normal lives soon.

Laladomin8 welcome :)

Lucasvongamez welcome :)

mvk12 welcome :)

nikkistew2 welcome :)

huffledorcrackhead welcome :)

The Sweetest Things welcome :)

toritam welcome :)

JocelynHayley welcome :)

And finally for this week ZzZamZzZ welcome :)

xx,

...

Thursday 9th of July 1998

Three weeks had passed since Hermione and Harry had moved in with Andromeda, baby Teddy and Kreacher at Grimmauld Place. What they all thought would be the beginning of something new and good, turned out to be quite the contrary. It had nothing to do with living together, it was because of what had happened the day that they had moved in.

As Harry had feared that afternoon had ended on a disastrous note. It had not been because of a fight between his two best friends even if Harry wished that Hermione and Ron had fought instead of what really occurred.

...

Alicia and Charlie had ended up at St Mungo, badly injured after trying to catch the three Death Eaters that were still on the run. Audrey had been injured too and taken to St Mungo as well, however a broken leg seemed like nothing compared to Charlie and Alicia's injuries.

Dean, Seamus and Neville had found them after getting a SOS from Charlie. Unfortunately, they had arrived too late to catch the Death Eaters. Once more, they had already vanished.

...

Since that day, everybody was worried, worst terrified as it seemed like they were impossible to catch. Somehow, they were always finding a way to escape. They were very powerful wizards and Dolohov's skills, when it came to silent spells or using his own deadly spell, were serious problems.

Kingsley was desperate. With his best aurors out of service, he had been spending most of his time out of the office. He had been moving heaven and earth to find them but till that day he remained unsuccessful. Indeed, since that day everytime that the Death Eaters were spotted somewhere, they were gone before someone arrived, as if someone was informing them so they could run away.

It was something that Kingsley was trying to avoid to think about as much as possible even though the idea that someone had infiltrated the Ministry was not letting him sleep at night.

...

...

At least, Alicia and Charlie had finally come back to work at the beginning of the week. Trials that had been postponed due to Kingsley's absence had all been rescheduled for this week too. Since Monday, Death Eaters and other groups of Voldemort's supporters were, massively, sent, on a daily basis, to Azkaban.

Kingsley with the help of Percy, Bill and Harry, who had been temporarily named Junior Head of the Aurors Department to help Audrey while Alicia had been resting, had tried to understand what had happened that afternoon.

Alicia had been in coma for a couple of days with no memory of what had happened during the fight when she awake. She could remember fainted, an explosion and seeing her two mates fell but nothing else.

Actually, none of them remembered what had truly happened, not even Audrey. Like Charlie and Alicia, she had been found unconscious on the ground, few miles away from Plymouth's black market but Dean, Seamus and Neville had been able to awoke her before to take her to St Mungo.

Kingsley had called the best Healers of the countries to try to restore the memories of the three aurors but nothing worked. Healer in Chief Thomas went further than the others and concluded that their memories of the fight had been magically ripped off from their brains. Kingsley forbade him to spread his diagnosis around as the last thing that he needed was people gossiping and babbling about it.

...

...

Saying that all this situation was frustrating was an understatement. Kingsley had so much on his mind. He had wanted to share his doubts, specially the ones about that time turner theory with someone but it was not easy. He was still very much afraid of having someone spying on them and he did not know who he could really trust.

...

However, a couple of days ago, he had finally shared them with Percy. They were both working late on the sentences of the trials of the day, one of them was Greyback's and the other one was Yaxley's, when Kingsley who could not take it anymore, shared his theory with Percy.

Percy taken aback did freeze for a moment. He knew what Kingsley was thinking as Andromeda was still playing on both sides. Nevertheless, Percy had not expected to get a heart to heart with the Minister. Not knowing what to do without betraying Hermione and Fred, he spent most of the conversation nodding or agreeing without further ado.

« I am sorry for bothering you with my ideas Percy. It is late, you should go home. »

« Oh no, no, you aren't bothering me. I am just shocked. » explained Percy

Kingsley chuckled, who would not be shocked...

« Can I ask you a question. » asked Percy nervously

Kingsley nodded

« Why haven't you taken Mr Lovegood's special time turner yet. If you are so convinced that they need it. » exclaimed Percy who was really desirous to get that answer

Wasn't Mr Lovegood's special time turner, the key? Apparently, for Kingsley, it was not.

« Because they need McGonagall's time turner first. I guess that they are looking for this answer, we all are, aren't we? It is the real mystery » answered evasively Kingsley

Percy nodded oddly. He wanted to tell Kingsley that soon this would be over, that soon the time turner would be destroyed. Yet, he could not tell the truth specially now that Hermione had finally agreed to destroy the time turner after Luna's full moon party.

...

...

Luna to cheer up the girls had decided to host a big full moon party with the girls at her house on Friday 10th of July. Reluctantly, Hermione had accepted to go. Indeed, she was not really looking forward to spend the night with Padma, Parvati, Lavender, Angelina and of course Luna's oddities but she needed a good excuse to flee from Grimmauld Place at night and spend the all night out.

As Andromeda had forbidden her and Harry to sleep elsewhere as long as Rookwood, Lestrange and Dolohov were still on the run, she had not been able to spend a single night with Fred since she had moved to Grimmauld Place.

Fred had no problem to bring her home way past curfew but they really needed a full night out to destroy the time turner. They needed a safe place to burn it and they could only do it during the night.

Hermione had tried to convince Andromeda to let her spend just one night out to destroy the time turner, insisting on the fact that Andromeda had been pushing her to take this decision but Andromeda had not budged. Everytime, she was replying that they could perfectly do it during the day, that there were a lot of places where they could go to perform the fire curse safely...

Hermione did not have the guts to argue with Andromeda.

She had tried another excuse, which was pretending that she was ready to have sex with Fred. She had explained that she did not want her first time to happen with Harry or George sleeping next door. She was naming George to be sure to take the flat off of the illegible places where Andromeda could suggest that it could happen safely. Again, Andromeda did refuse reminding Hermione that she could use plenty of spells to be sure to do not be heard or disturbed. Turning crimson, Hermione had gone upstairs frustrated and embarrassed. She had not lied about her feelings, she really could not think about doing it with Harry or George sleeping few meters away.

In fact, whenever she was making out with Fred on the couch either at home or at the twin's flat and someone was interrupting them, she wanted to hide herself under the couch. Having a steady boyfriend was still new to her and she was still adjusting to this situation like when George or Harry or worst Kingsley were catcalling whenever they were catching them. She did not like the teasing either. What she and Fred were doing was their private business.

She was very secretive when it was coming to her private life so allowing Fred to spend the night at Grimmauld Place or spending the night with him at the flat to do it, the first time, her first time, was not an option that she would ever consider.

The worst was when she was picturing what breakfast would be like. She did not know what would be worst, George smirking and dropping little sentences to make her blush or breakfast at home with Andromeda, Harry and Kreacher trying to look as normal as possible when it would truly be awkward as hell.

Fred had agreed. Since Hermione had moved in with Andromeda, he was really understanding the words parental control. Actually, the worst for him was having dinner at Grimmauld Place when Kingsley was there too. Fred really had the sensation that Kingsley was watching them. He could swear that he had seen Kingsley frowning when he had tried to slip his hands under Hermione's top.

Hermione's house was safe and it was the place where she knew she would feel at ease but the floo network had been temporarily suspended in all the empty houses, safety measures...

In other words, this party was the first excuse that she was having in weeks to escape from the house to destroy the time turner and perhaps later do _it _too because lately she could not take the idea out of her mind...

...

As for Fred, he had tried to understand why Hermione was insisting on destroying the time turner at night, not that he openly agreed with Andromeda but he was definitely bewildered by his girlfriend's attitude.

For Hermione, it was just too dangerous during the day. Besides, they were busy during the day as they were still working hard on that potion to reverse the effects of the polyjuice. They were getting there, few samples had worked over the last few days but they still needed to work on it.

It was true, they were busy, Fred could not argue against that, moreover he really wanted that Potions' Master title that Kingsley had promised them. He wanted it to rub it all over his mother's face. It was childish and certainly not the best way to resolve his multiple issues with his mother but he did not care.

...

...

They had been planning everything for days now, everything was set up. On the following day Hermione would leave the shop before 6pm. She would join Ginny at the Burrow and together they would go to the Lovegood's. Fred would pick up the time turner before to close the shop with George. He would spend the evening at the Burrow with his parents and brothers. He would leave after midnight to pick up Hermione and they would fly on Brigitte to the Forest of Dean where they would finally get rid of the time turner for good and why not do something else.

Fred did not want to raise up his optimism but Hermione had implied _it _several times so he had granted himself the right to think about _it._

...

They had a bit more than 24 hours to wait, they were very confident, their plan was going to work. What could possibly happen in 24 hours anyway. Certainly nothing bad enough to disturb their plan...

...

...

Friday 10th of July 1998

It was the end of the afternoon and Percy was, in his office, busy writing down the list of time turners that they had collected. He was writting down which one should be examined and destroyed first.

After his conversation with Kingsley, the Minister had apparently done a lot of thinking as he had ordered Alicia and Audrey to bring the special time turner to the Ministry right after the full moon party. Yes, they had been invited too.

Kingsley, evasive as always, had told Percy that it could not wait any longer and that any advantage must be taken. Percy had agreed and accepted the extra work gladly. He was hoping that it would help him to forget about the fact that Audrey had turned him down again, for the third time in a row, in one week.

He just wanted to have a coffee with her to be sure that she was ok. She was acting oddly since the attack. Percy had many doubts. Lately, he was even thinking that she was the spy...

Of course, she had not showed up at the blind date organized by Fred and George, not that Percy had too much hope at this point of the story but still, it had surprised him. The Audrey that he thought that he knew would have come...

Evidently, what was bothering him the most was the fact that it seemed that the witch had grown a soft spot for Charlie...

...

At least Charlie did not seem to care that much about her but he was not doing anything to push her away either. Percy did not want to feel like Ron. He had tried to speak with Alicia but Alicia had told him to get lost when he had mentioned his brother Charlie. Actually, since they had come back to work, Alicia had asked to be paired with another team. She had been paired with Harry and Ron while Bill was now working with Charlie and Audrey.

Percy,confused, had confronted his brother. Surely the weird attitude of the two witches must had something to do with his brother. Charlie had not liked the accusation and they had ended up in a fight that could compete with Fred and Ron's fight.

Charlie had even moved temporary with the twins. He did not want to deal with Percy at the Ministry and at the apartment that they were sharing. His life was too complicated at the moment and Percy's hare-brained ideas were just too much.

...

Indeed, Charlie was trying to understand why he had slept with Alicia, a woman, about two weeks ago but with Percy and his drone about how something was wrong with Audrey were not helping him at all to understand what he had done and why. He had never slept with a woman before, he liked men but this night with Alicia had confused him.

He wished that he could blame the alcohol, medicine and the current situation but that would be lying. He did not know what to do. He had taken a bad decision, without knowing, which was avoiding Alicia. He was Weasley man after all and they were known to do not be always on point when it came to women.

Alicia was furious of course but her rage was stirring him, his desire for Alicia was growing.

He had been trying to figure out what his problem was for the last two weeks. He still had not found the solution however he had discovered something else and that something was what was leading him to Percy's office in that moment.

He owed his brother an apology, there was definitely something wrong with Audrey.

...

...

I guess it is pretty clear what will happen in the next chapter. Would love to hear your thoughts about what is coming.

Xx


	47. Chapter 41

New chapter and sorry for the delay. I hope that you are all well. I wanted to post this chapter sooner but I had a little break down.

Nisafreen welcome :)

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and finally Arodri welcome :)

xx

...

Charlie did not wait for his brother to tell him to come in to open the door. Actually, he was pretty sure that Percy was not answering because he was still upset. Fred was right, Percy and Ron were more alike than he would have ever imagined.

However, Charlie was wrong. Indeed, Percy was just too concentrated to hear that someone was knocking.

...

As Charlie was making his way into his brother's office, Percy was raising his gaze to see who had come in. Surprised he was when his eyes met Charlie's blue eyes.

...

Staring at Charlie, Percy, angrily, asked him what he wanted. He was busy and did not have time to attend his brother's request.

Not listening Charlie sat in the free chair and begged his brother to give him few minutes while he was checking his pockets. Percy rolled his eyes but gave him five minutes. However, he warned his older brother, his visit better had to be justified by something urgent.

Charlie who was still checking his pockets, affirmed that it was highly urgent and important. Percy raised an eyebrow and admitted to himself that his brother really looked worried. He readjusted his glasses on his nose, he was ready to listen.

...

...

Few seconds later, Charlie had taken out of his pocket a little pink box that Percy had instantly recognized.

Percy frowned wondering why Charlie had it in his pocket. He knew that Charlie liked men so may be the young man was exploring another part of his sexuality.

Percy sighed, he did not care about his brother's sexual orientation. Nor, did he want his brother to share his sexual life with him. If Charlie had come to him to talk about that, then he had chosen the wrong person to talk about it.

Since their feud about Audrey, Percy had promise to himself to never listen to Charlie speaking about his love's problems ever again. Just like Ron was jealous of Fred, Percy was jealous of Charlie as Charlie was the one that Audrey had laid her eyes on. Their mother would be thrilled when she would learn that another girl had come in between two of her sons...

...

...

Percy's gaze was going from his brother's face to the little pink box. How could this thing justify anything important and urgent at the same time, Percy was very desirous to find out. His annoyance was just growing and growing.

He was sure that Charlie would just try to convince him, again, that he was not feeling anything for Audrey and that their relationship was purely platonic. He was ready to bet that Charlie was about to serve him a foolish story about another one night stand with a guy that had gone wrong because of the little pink box.

Percy did not have the intention to believe his brother until Charlie had not spoken with Audrey. As long as Charlie would not make anything to push away Audrey or at least make her understand that he was not interested in her, Percy would distrust his brother.

He, and the rest of the wizards and witches working at the Ministry, had overheard Alicia and Audrey babbling about Charlie so many times that Charlie could not pretend that he did not know that the girls liked him. The recent fight between the two ladies was just another proof.

Obviously, Percy did not care about Alicia but Audrey that was another story...

...

...

Percy, still staring at his brother, was waiting for an explanation. He was wondering what could have happen with that little pink box...

The little pink box, and the candies that were inside, were one of the twins' products. A product that had got the legal authorization to be sold less than a month ago. Percy had even signed the authorization as Kingsley was busy that day.

The twins had named it,_ call me by your name_. It was a wonderful product that belonged to the new no polyjuice needed kit.

One of those candies had the power to change your voice for many hours. Actually, it was doing more than just changing your voice, it was giving you the voice of the last person that you have spoken with. It was so efficient that Hermione had said that people using real polyjuice should consider using one of those candies to be sure to get the right voice and all that it included like accent, pronunciation, speed and more as those little details were the only problems, with the use of the wand, of the polyjuice potion.

The twins had created two versions. The pink box was to give you the voice of a woman, the blue one was to give you the voice of a man.

When Percy had validated the product, he had reckoned that it was another amazing invention.

...

...

Percy shook his head, it was not the time to start dreaming. He cleared his throat and ordered his brother to speak. More than five minutes had passed already so if Charlie really had something to day, it was now or never.

Charlie took and deep breath, he had to do it, lives were in danger.

He told Percy that he had found the box in one of Audrey's pockets. Before Percy could imagined things that did not occur, Charlie raised his hands and explained in details what had happened.

« I had lunch with Audrey today. Bill had left us to eat with Fleur, so we were alone. Audrey was gone to the loo when the waitress came but I had no money to pay our lunch. I had not realized that my wallet was empty. Audrey always advances as she gets the money back from the Ministry, from the financial department »

An angry Percy interrupted his brother. Had Charlie seriously come to his office, when he had a lot of work to do, to tell him about his lunch date with Audrey.

Charlie begged his brother to let him finish. He swore for the hundredth time that nothing was going on between him and Audrey. He even mentioned that he was not finding Audrey attractive. She was too short, her hair too blonde and her boobs too big besides he was finding her american accent annoying. Obviously his description of the witch upset Percy. Indeed, everything that Charlie disliked in Audrey were the things that Percy were very fond of.

Terribly annoyed, Percy crossed his arms and ordered Charlie to get to the point or to leave his office right away. Confused Charlie stared at his little brother. Why communicating with his brothers was so complicated. They were brothers, not ennemies...

He could not understand why Percy was not believing him. He really could not care less about Audrey's feelings for him and Percy should trust him. He would always trust his brother before anyone else, they were family for Merlin's sake.

...

...

As Percy had started to mumble, Charlie rolled his eyes. He already had enough to deal with Alicia. He was even thinking about confessing what had happened with Alicia so Percy would really see that he was not trying to nail Audrey but considering that Percy was glaring at him, it was better to make his story short and skip the Alicia's chapter. Besides, he had not lied to Percy, he really had something extremely important to say.

He went on with his story, starting where he had stopped few minutes ago:

« I looked for money in her jacket, the box was in her pocket along with an empty bottle that was definitely smelling like polyjuice. Bewildered, I thought about what you said and many things came to my mind. Giving you details would be too long so with that being said, I do admit that she could be the spy, well whoever had taken her identity could be the spy. » finished Charlie

Percy's jaw dropped. He asked his brother if he was sure about the polyjuice. Charlie confirmed , he was positive. Even though he was not a potion expert, polyjuice's smell was just too perculiar too be mistaken with another potion. Moreover, the twins were breeding cauldrons of polyjuice to work on their counter potion so he had the _pleasure_ to smell the disgusting potion every day. He could not be wrong.

He finished saying:

« I hope that you are wrong Percy, I really do but Mum always says that no polyjuice can fool a heart in love so you might have sense something that we could not. I am scared. » confessed Charlie worriedly

...

Percy seemed to be more tensed after listening to his brother. Even if he was glad to see that someone was finally paying attention to him, he could not calm down. For him, just thinking that Audrey could have been kidnapped was making him shivering. He questioned his brother about those other details as they were no longer details for him.

He also asked his brother why he had come to him first instead of going to Kingsley. It was not like if Charlie needed his permission to speak with Kingsley.

It was a question after the other with no time in between for Charlie to answer.

...

Finally Percy asked Charlie if he had told Alicia or Harry or Bill or Ron or anyone else about his discovery.

Charlie shook his head, he had not said a word to anyone yet.

« I had to tell you first. I owe you an apology Percy. Also, I knew that you would believe me, not sure that Bill or Ron would have. » he said with a weak smile before to pursue

He said that he could not remember what exactly happened when they had been attacked but that it was probably the day that someone had taken Audrey's identity. Everything had happened so fast. Alicia had been stunned first, then he had been stunned and when he had awoken, he was at St Mungo.

He had believed Audrey when she had said that she had been stunned too. Why would he have thought that she was lying. They had faced the Death Eaters before and everytime they had lost. The last fight had been no different from the others. Besides, Neville, Seamus and Dean had found her unconscious so who would dare to say that Audrey was not telling the truth.

Percy agreed, they had no valid reason to distrust her. Charlie interrupted his brother:

« But it doesn't mean that I should have not listened to you. If I had listened to you, I would have seen sooner that something was wrong with her. For example, lately she is having problems with her wand. Until now, I did not think that it could have any explanation other than misspelling or the undesirable effects of a jinx. I should have been on my guard. I am sorry for yelling at you the other day. »

After that sentence, a miracle happened: Percy smiled at his brother

« It is ok Charlie. It is not your fault and I am sorry for yelling at you too. I am just so worried about her. At least, she is alive. They are using polyjuice so they need her alive. We have to go to Kingsley, right away. » said Percy

Charlie approved but before to leave he had one more question. He wanted to know if the presence of a Death Eater undercover at the Ministry could have something to do with Mr Lovegood's time turner. He had heard the rumors about the Death Eaters being after the time turner...

Percy lowered his gaze, looking at the papers on his desk and mumbled that he could not explain. Charlie sighed and then he asked if Percy's weird attitude and theories had anything to do with Hermione and the twins.

Percy bite his tongue to do not choke. How could Charlie have linked everything already?

Yes, Charlie was intuitive, something that was not a quality among the Weasleys, so he could have sensed that something was going on and as he was currently living with the twins, he could have overheard or eavesdrop something but still that was impressive.

...

The quartet was trying to act as normal as possible but deep down, Fred, George, Hermione and Percy knew that people were starting to wonder what was wrong with them. Harry had even tried to confront Hermione several times but he had always failed. Lately, Percy was also wondering if Kingsley had not shared his theories with him to force him to confess...

Charlie asked again and Percy answered again that he could not explain. Annoyed, Charlie told his brother that they were family and that they had to trust each other. He gave him a sermon until Percy gave up.

« Yes, it has something to do with whatever is going on between Hermione, Fred, George and I. But it is Hermione and Fred's business and I cannot tell you, they have to do it but we still have to speak with Kingsley, right now. » urged Percy who had turned betroot.

Charlie sighed and revealed that he believed to know what was going on. He had seen some books about time turners on the back shop, just like he knew that Hermione was one of the very few persons who knew about McGonagall's time turner. From there, he said that it was not hard to guess that she might have stolen it during the battle of Hogwarts. He had no idea why though which relieved Percy.

« Let me sum up before we go. Percy, please. »

Percy nodded.

« So Hermione had taken what the Death Eaters have been looking for weeks. However, they don't know that she has it and now they want to steal Lovegood's time turner as they can't find McGonagall's. They knew about Lovegood's, I have read the repport. Bad luck for them, the Lovegoods' house is under protection 24/7 so to get it, they need to infiltrate the Ministry, take the appearance of someone to get it incognito. Twisted but fair. »

« Yeah twisted, very twisted Charlie. » answered Percy evasively

« I am still far from the truth, am I not. » asked Charlie perplexed

Percy did answer his brother's question:

« Yes, far from the truth I am afraid. I wish your version would be the right one but it is worst »

And then Percy asked where Audrey was. If she had lunch with Charlie, where was she now. Charlie gulped before to reply:

« Well this is the part that you aren't going to like. We had to escort Yaxley, Greyback and two others Death Eaters to Azkaban. I went to the loo, told her to wait for me but when I returned to her office, she was already gone with a couple of dementors. This is when I understood that something was definitely wrong. »

Percy had turned white. He could not believe it. He did not even ask his brother why he had not mentioned that first, he would ask later but for now, they had to run to inform Kingsley.

They jumped out of their chairs and left Percy's office running, they were all in danger, the girls were in danger.

...

...

I am sorry for the lack of fremione in the latest chapters but they will be back next chapter :)

xx


	48. Chapter 42

New chapter. We have reached 200 followers on this story and that means so much to me. Thanks for following and readin :)

Btdunn welcome :)

The Slug Club welcome :)

And finally for this week misadventure girl welcome :)

Xx,

...

Kinglsey was alone in his office. He was writing a rather long letter that he hid in one of his desk's drawers when the two men bursted into his office.

He saw their long faces and understood that something terrible must had happened. He looked at them in the eyes and he read what he had feared for some time.

« Kingsley something terrible has happened. It is about Audrey. » announced Percy who was still panting.

He was not used to run. Why would he? He did not have to train like the Aurors and he did not like sport in general but for Audrey he would run to death if needed.

Kingsley closed his eyes, he knew what was coming. He told them to go ahead while he was trying to calm down. His nightmare was about to become a reality.

...

...

As he was listening to the two redheads, guilt, anger and rage were engulfing him. He could not believe that he had been so mistaken. He had thought that he could do better than his predecessors, he was wrong. He was just as bad as they had been.

Dumbledore was right, power was the most dangerous thing in the world, it changed people.

...

Kingsley had been suspecting for weeks that there was a spy at the Ministry but at the same time he was believing that he was in control of the situation.

He had suspected many but he had never suspected the Head of the Aurors's department, the brilliant American witch that he had begged to move to England to help them.

« Don't blame yourself, it is not Audrey, not our Audrey, it is a Death Eater.» comforted Percy

The Minister was trying to hide his trouble but it was very hard. Audrey, that just could not be true, it was so hard to believe. If something had happened to the young witch, he would never forget himself.

How could he have been so clueless this all time? He should have investigated more when his best team had been sent to St Mungo. He should have properly questioned Audrey instead of just asking her few questions at the hospital but how was he supposed to know that she was no longer Audrey, how could he have guessed?

Why had his radar failed? He knew the answer, his quest, the time turner. He had been focusing on his personal quest for weeks. Andromeda had warned him, he should have listened to her.

Nevertheless, he had not been wrong, the Death Eaters were after the time turners, both but instead of doing something to stop them, to really stop them, he had been looking for the person who had taken McGonagall's time turner. His priority was to protect whoever had taken this time turner from the Death Eaters. He had failed twice.

Now, they were all in danger, the girls were in danger because of him, Hermione was in danger because of him.

...

The two brothers were feeling helpless. They told Kingsley to do not flay himself. It was not his fault, it was their fault, to all of them for refusing to see further, for refusing to think that things could become dark again. Charlie and Percy had both very good reasons to feel as bad as Kingsley but should they share those reasons? They weren't sure yet.

...

Kingsley was shaking his head, not listening to the Weasleys. It was his damn fault, period. Hermione had been invited to Luna's party and Andromeda had accepted to let her go because Audrey and Alicia would be there too. Without knowing, he had sent Hermione straight to the enemy's trap. Andromeda would kill him, and he would let her, if something happened to Hermione.

Percy and Charlie were still trying to calm him down. They needed him and his sharp mind to get out of this one. They had not expected to see the Minister almost falling into tears. They knew why though. They knew that he was growing a very soft spot for the inhabitants of Grimmauld Place and that they had become his family. Harry and Hermione were becoming the kids that he never had.

...

It was not the only reason why Kingsley was feeling so bad but the brothers were unaware of the fact that Kingsley believed that Harry or Hermione had taken the time turner or that he believed that Hermione certainly knew where it was.

He swallowed hard but did not speak, he could not. It was like if he had lost his voice. Anger against himself and fears were so strong that they had formed an enormous knot in his throat.

What the two young men told him did not matter anymore. Indeed, the second that they had stepped into his office, he had understood that he had made a terrible mistake.

...

Since they had listed the missing Death Eaters after the battle of Hogwarts, Kingsley had been waiting for that moment, the moment that would lead them to the very last battle of this war. He had tried his best to anticipate every move of the Death Eaters to stop them but he had failed just like he had failed to decrypt the time turner's puzzle on time.

Yes, he had collected precious informations there and there but it had never been enough to find out who had taken the time turner. He had three suspects, each member of the Golden Trio. However, even if he was sure that one of them had stolen McGonagall's time turner, he had never found the nerve to confront them directly.

He had tried, mostly with Harry as logically Harry was the one who had come back from the dead that night but Harry's speech had disconcerted him every time. Yes, he was the Minister of Magic and yes he could investigate as much as he wanted but what could he really do against the chosen one, the boy who lived, Harry their savior, the one who was destined to kill Voldemort, not much.

He had done what he could do with Harry which was not much so he had kept him on his list of suspects before to try his chance with Hermione, his suspect number two or perhaps number one.

Harry was too brave and fierce to try to trick Fate and Death with a time turner. Hermione was the brain of the trio and she would have done everything to try to save her best friend. She would not have let Harry died.

Unfortunately, Kingsley had not been able to learn anything that could help him to clear the sky. He had not got any real proof that Hermione and Harry had played with the time turner again. Yes, Hermione knew where the time turner was the night of the battle, she knew how to use it and she had motives to use it but there was an problem, Hermione had not been alone during the battle. She had always been seen with someone and when Harry had gone to the dark forest, she was with the Weasleys at Fred's bedside.

He had tried with Ron, in vain. He did not believe that it could have been Ron anyway. Ron was brave but not smart enough to use the time turner without being seen twice that night.

Of course, it was possible that because of a change in time, nobody could remember seeing the trio or one of its member twice but Kingsley could not point any action, except Harry going to the dark forrest, that could have been rewritten.

Something was missing and no matter how hard he had tried to find out what it was, he had not been successful.

He broke the pencil that was in his hands and repeated again that it was his fault.

...

...

Charlie who was feeling more guiltier by the second said that if it was someone's fault, it was his for not paying attention, for being distracted. He was Audrey's teammate, if someone should have noticed something that should have been him. He decided that he had to reveal the truth about his lack of attention.

« I really am sorry. Alicia and I have violated the rules. We had a one night stand a couple of weeks ago. We both wanted it, we weren't drunk but on the morning after it was another story, I've been avoiding her since that day. »

As he was speaking, he realized that he needed to talk about what had happened. He should have done it sooner. The timing could not possibly be worst and Percy and Kingsley certainly weren't the right people to talk about what happened but he did not care. He had to get it out off his chest.

« I had never slept with a woman before, never and I have been disturbed since that night. Audrey found out, well whoever has taking her identity had guessed. That person confronted Alicia, something that the real Audrey would have done by the way. This is why they fought. I knew it but it was easier to lie and pretend that it was not my fault. » said Charlie who was making an effort to do not look down.

Percy and Kingsley were astounded.

Motionless, Percy was staring at his brother. Alicia Spinnet, really? Who would have ever believed that Charlie would have his first experience with a woman with the skinny brunette.

Alicia was a wonderful witch and an amazing auror but she was shy and not as outspoken as her best friend Angelina.

Fred and George were always saying that Alicia was the smartest of their group of friends however she was too shy to stand out for herself. Angelina had dated Fred, Katie had dated George but Alicia had not dated Lee. They all wanted it to happen but Alicia had said that this game of dating between the six of them could break their friendship. Lee had been in different relationships but Alicia had just been dating no one.

Alicia seemed to be always hiding herself in the shadow of someone else, it was one of her strength actually. When she was training to become an Auror, it had become her skill. Nobody was ever expecting her to be the one that they should fear.

Percy could remember perfectly when Charlie had taken Alicia at the Quidditch team. He had said that she was skilled. He had been amazed by the twelve years old girl skills but unfortunately he had judged her too shy to standout. Angelina had made it to the team while Alicia had made it to the reserve team. After Charlie's graduation, Oliver became captain and did give a real chance to Alicia.

If they were not in such a dangerous situation, Percy would find the all story funny. His brother having sex with Alicia Spinnet. The cool dragons' tamer falling for the girl that he used to see as an annoyingly shy little girl.

Percy looked at his brother and thought that this surprising fact should give him hope. Maybe, one day he would have his chance with Audrey.

...

Charlie asked his brother if he was ok. Percy nodded and Charlie carried on with his story.

« Alicia did play fair and asked to be paired with a new team, just like I should have done. It is written that Aurors from the same team aren't supposed to be more than friends so the team can always be focused on its mission. I had not taken this seriously. I had not think that a night with Alicia could have blinded me. » explained Charlie

« I agree and I will make sure once this is over that you aren't going to work with Audrey or Alicia ever again but it is not the first time that it happened and it won't be the last. Look at Tonk and Remus. Remus fought hard to do not fall for her but Teddy is here so technically, they did violate the rules too. Besides, it had happened after the attack. Your problem appeared less than two weeks ago. So I am still the one to guilt for not seriously questioning Audrey. » stated Kingsley

« Well to be completely honest, the problem is older than that. I should have asked to be paired with another team when I first overheard Alicia and Audrey talking about me. It was more than a month ago. I was not sure what Alicia was really thinking but I knew that Audrey would like to get to know me more personally. I ignored it just like I ignored the fact that Alicia and Audrey were, let's say, competing to get my attention. » confessed a red Charlie

Charlie could feel Kingsley's eyes dissecting him. Was Kingsley about to fire him? He did not care anymore. All he wanted was to make sure that the girls were ok, that Alicia was ok.

...

...

After a couple of minutes Kingsley cleared his throat and said that it was definitely a lot more complicated than he would have ever imagined. He was having problems but he was not the only one. Of course his mistake had been major but Charlie was right, he should have asked, along with the girls, to be paired with other aurors.

Perhaps, they really were all to blame like Percy had suggested earlier. Kingsley stared at Percy. It was time to open Pandora's box.

...

Being straightforward, he asked Percy what he knew about McGonagall's time turner.

Percy thought that he was going to faint. He sat on one of the chairs and looked at his feet.

« Percy, what do you know. It is time to speak. How come did you put everything together.» pushed Kingsley

Percy flushed and said with a quivering voice:

« Well, you told me about the time turner, your doubts and what the Death Eaters could do with Mr Lovegood's time turner combined with any other time turner that could have been used on the 2nd of May like Pr McGonagall's missing one so I thought about it myself and after finding Audrey's attitude very odd. »

Kingsley interrupted Percy, he needed facts, not the all story.

« You thought that they could have decided to infiltrate the Ministry to get information and who better to get informations than taking the place of the Head of the Aurors' department. Brillant Percy, really brilliant though I must ask why did you give yourself so many headaches about the time turner and what could happen. Percy, please speak. » ordered Kingsley

« I was just worried, you know for my family, my friends. My brother is a member of the golden trio, my little sister is dating Harry Potter and another of my brothers is dating the last member of the Golden trio so anything that could put our lives in danger makes me think. » lied Percy

« And he is in love with Audrey. » added Charlie who had decided that it was not the time to let Percy drowned

Whatever Percy was hidding, it was to protect Hermione and Fred so Charlie had assumed that as the older brother, he had to defend Percy. Percy certainly had his reasons to do not explain everything.

This time Kingsley lost his nerves and angrily asked if Hermione had taken the time turner.

Percy still looking at his shoes mumbled a yes. He had not wanted to betray Hermione's secret but she was in danger. Besides, it was now pretty cleared that Kingsley had been suspecting Hermione.

...

Kingsley took another pencil and broke it then he jumped out of his chair ordering Percy to send an owl to all the member of the Order and to call back all the aurors.

« Charlie, find Harry and Ron and join me at the entrance, we have to go to Azkaban even if I don't believe that this is where the spy is taking Yaxley, Greyback and the other two. Percy, you better find Fred and George. We will meet you at the Burrow.» he said in a quite gentle tone even though his anger was notable

« What do we do about the girls? Ginny and Hermione are there, should we tell them» asked Charlie who was not sure what the plan was

Kingsley sighed and said:

« I am afraid that we have to let them go to that party. We can not tell them anything. It is our only chance to finally arrest the Death Eaters, that's why we have to hurry up if we don't want to be late for the party. It is 5pm, party starts at 6pm, we have an hour ahead of us. »

The two brothers found the plan dangerous. They tried to insist, they should inform at least one of the girls but Kingsley did not budge.

« If one of them know, they will try to fix it on their own and no matter how skilled they are, it won't be enough. Death Eaters had weeks to prepare this plan and you can bet that they have thought about everything. Charlie, I see you in 5min at the entrance. Percy, I see you at 6pm sharp at the burrow.»

And with that said they left knowing that they were about to fight into another deadly battle.

...

Last chapter won't come before the end of June. I have to go back to work after 3 months so it won't be easy at the beginning but I am glas things are getting better in Europe. For all of you who are still in countries where the situation is crazy, be safe.

Xx


	49. Chapter 43

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...

Percy did what Kingsley had ordered him to do, except for one thing: he did not wait for the Aurors to arrive. Instead of that, he had asked his older brother to inform the rest of the Aurors so he could leave the Ministry.

He had been careful to do not mention anything about Hermione. Kingsley did not want anyone to know. The Minister had said that he would deal with the young witch once this would be over. He would deal with her at Grimmauld Place, at home, like a father would do with his daughter.

Fair or not, Percy did not care besides whenever a member of the Golden trio was involved, people were always screaming injustice. People were thinking that their punishments were not bad enough or the contrary and this would last for many more years.

He had, basically, just explained the Audrey's situation to Bill before to leave, well tried to leave. ...

...

Percy, really, had to run to the shop to speak with Fred and George but Bill was not letting him go. He had firmly grabbed his little brother's left arm with no intention of letting him go.

He was confused. He had understood only half of Percy' speech and he could tell that Percy had voluntarily passed on many details of the story and that was bothering him.

Also, he was worried about his wife, their sister Ginny, Hermione and all the poor girls who would have to fight against, only Merlin knew how many Death Eaters and other magical creatures.

...

Percy tried his best to comfort his brother. He used different arguments. The girls would not be alone for long. They were strong and skilled witches. They all had been fighting at Hogwarts two months and a half ago so they could deal with the Death Eaters for forty minutes.

However, Percy's tactical did not work as Bill was still arguing with him. He wanted to inform his wife so Percy had to threaten him. He told his older brother that he would use the memory charm if needed.

« Kingsley is the Minister and we have to follow his orders. »

Bill chuckled, the comment coming from Percy was funny. He told Percy that he thought that he had changed. He had wanted to believe that his little brother would never again put the Ministry before his family and that Percy would never again follow absurd orders from the Minister of Magic, whoever he was.

Bill's comments hurt Percy. The young employee of the Ministry had learnt his lesson, he really had and he had thought that his family trusted him.

Offended, he looked into his brother's eyes. He saw anger, fear and pain. The knot in his throat became bigger. One day, he would prove them that they all could count on him. One day, not this one. Too many lives were involved, Percy did not want to be held responsible. He did not want to be the one to blame.

He did justify his choice of following the orders though.

« I am not doing this for Kingsley and I am as scared as you are but Kingsley is right. If we want to catch them all for good, we have to let them start. The woman that I am in love with is sequestered by those morons, we don't even know if she is injured or not so trust me, I want to end this as much as you want. »

Bill sighed, what could he answer to that.

He finally released his brother's arm and let him go.

« Just one last question Percy, why do you, specifically you, have to go to inform Fred and George. I mean, Fred is dating Hermione and Ginny is our little sister but they aren't Aurors or active members of the Order of the Phoenix at the moment so what do you need from them. » asked a suspicious Bill

« I cannot tell you Bill. I will see you at the burrow at 6pm. » answered, coldly, Percy before to leave

...

...

Worried, Bill was looking at his brother leaving the Ministry. He was wondering what was going on as much as he was wondering what would change, if he informed Fleur. He was so scared for his wife.

Fleur might be pregnant, she could loose their baby during that fight. He sighed, he knew that he was being irrational but they were trying so hard to have a baby and it might had finally worked.

Afraid of not being compatible because of their mixed blood, they had seen a Healer about two months ago. It had been right after the battle of Hogwarts. Fred was still in coma and as they were spending so much time at St Mungo, Fleur had suggested that it could be a good idea to share their doubts with a Healer.

...

The Healer had informed them that if they wanted to get pregnant faster, they should be active the nights before the full moon. Apparently, Bill's little soldiers were at their best those nights.

They had listened to their Healer and Fleur was late for the first time in years. She was only three days late but as she was never late, the young couple was growing hope of having good news to share soon. Moreover, a friend of Fleur's mother was a seer and she had told Fleur that she had foreseen a baby boy, with red hair, for the next year, for spring.

The thought of loosing his wife, and a possible baby, was killing him. They desperately wanted this baby boy.

...

Bill still had to hope for the best though. He firmly believed that Percy would not be able to stop Fred from running to Hermione to tell her everything. Fred was not working at the Ministry, unlike him, so he would not have any problem on threatening Percy. Fred was impulsive and he loved Hermione too much to follow Kingsley's orders and he had George to help him. Fred and George would never stand against each other.

If Percy was really going to tell the twins what was going on then Bill could not imagine Fred, and George, obeying quietly. It was impossible.

Yet, Bill knew that Percy had not told him the all story. Bill was certain that the twins, Hermione and Percy were hiding something. Charlie had confirmed that his brothers and Hermione were acting weird. Whispering, closing doors or changing the subject of their conversations whenever they were seeing him.

A secret between those four could not lead to anything good, Bill knew it and this was scaring him more than Luna's party and the Death Eaters...

...

...

In the meantime at the shop.

Fred and George were chatting actively about everything and nothing. They both could not wait to get rid of the time turner. Fred had already picked it up from the place where he had been hiding it for almost a month. The time turner was currently in the inside pocket of his jacket. There, it was safe.

Once, they would have destroyed it, they would finally be able to move on. They wanted to turn the page, to relax and live their lives. It had been their dream since Fred had awoken from his coma.

They had had to deal with so much things over the last two months and a half that at some point they did wonder if they were ever going to start writing on this new page.

...

Lately, it had become worst. It had been so hard for them to keep their secret safe. They had been so worried. They had pushed people away which had only increase the suspiciousness of their friends and family.

Situation had got unbearable since Charlie had, temporarily, moved in with them. With him around, they could no longer talked freely at the apartment. This had been a major issue. If Luna had not decided to host this party, they would have kicked Charlie out. They loved Charlie and did not want to argue with him, or their mother, but they had to protect their secret at all costs. Harry had been a problem too. He had been questioning Hermione almost every day. Kingsley had also figured out that they were up to something. People around them were nosey...

They had been tiptoeing, and mega careful, for weeks but tonight they would finally get their freedom back.

...

Fred already had many things in mind like asking Hermione to marry him. Yes, he was still determined to have her saying I do within a year.

George had, totally, given up on trying to make his twin understand that they were too young to get married. He had tried countless times before to give up though.

Fred was stubborn and for some unknown reasons he did not want to wait. He had affirmed that as Hermione was the love of his life getting married sooner than what people would expect would not change the end of the story.  
He had even convinced George to help him to clean the space that was above the back shop and their workroom to enlarge their apartment so when Hermione would move in, George would not have to move out right away. If George had already moved then they would have two spare bedrooms for curly little redheads.

For George's despair, Charlie was around when Fred had got this fantastic idea and he had approved Fred's idea. He had said that it was a wonderful idea and that he was ready to help. He loved kids even more than dragons and he could not wait to become an uncle as he believed that he would never become a father.

George had never rolled his eyes more often than during this talk.

...

They had this conversation so many times over the last few weeks that George was holding his breath every time he was seeing his twin becoming serious in the presence of Hermione. Fred had said within a year but somehow George was quite sure that what Fred really meant was before the end of the summer.

Yes, Fred had accepted the fact that Hermione wanted to go back to school but he was so afraid of loosing her that being engaged before having Hermione on her way to Hogwarts would help him to deal with this separation.

George knew his twin like no one else, he knew what Fred had in mind. Fred needed to be sure that Hermione would not end their relationship before to get on the train.

The fact that Fred had dragged him to few jewelers to have a look at engagement rings was another proof. For George, this had been the confirmation that Hermione was really about to become the next member of the Weasley's family.

Fred had not found the perfect ring yet so he was thinking about getting in touch with an independent jeweler to get the perfect ring for Hermione.

However and even if it was true that George had accepted the fact that Hermione would become number 3 of their duo, he could not stop thinking that Fred had a hidden reason to move on so fast. Also, George had stopped trying to dissuade Fred from proposing because he knew that Fred would never be able to cope with life if Hermione decided to end their relationship. It was a real threat, Fred would die if Hermione stopped to love him.

This and work's talk had been their main subjects of conversation for the last few weeks and thaFriday was no different than the other days.

As usual the happy conversation of the twins was slowly drifting to the ring and the why, how and when Fred would propose when Percy arrived at the shop.

...

...

Fred and George asked him if he had seen a naked woman as he was all sweaty and looking paler than usual.

« There is no time for any joke. May we speak in private. » asked Percy who was praying for his plan to work

Fred and George nodded.

They told Verity and Lee to call them if they needed their help. Lee told them to do not worry about the shop. He would look after the shop as long as needed.

...

Fred closed the door of their private office while George was massaging Percy's shoulders to calm him down. Percy pushed his brother away, the massage was just making him feel more nervous.

How was he supposed to tell the truth to the twins? He had already argued with too many of his siblings for the day. Charlie, Bill and even Ron with whom he had a different on the morning.

How was he supposed to deal with an angry Fred? Should not he just let Fred informed Hermione? He had forbidden and threatened Bill but he could not do that with Fred, could he?

He did not know what to think or do. He was staring at the twins and they were staring at him. Fred's fists were clenched and Percy did not want to experience what being punched by Fred felt like.

It took him some courage but he finally opened his mouth.

...

He did not lie to the twins. He just forgot to mention most of the important details like the fake Audrey being on her way to Azkaban to, probably, free Death Eaters to crash Luna's party.

Ashamed, he confessed that he had made a mistake by not sharing with anyone his doubts about Audrey's weird attitude. He justified his action insinuating that no one would have believed him anyway.

« I know that you all think that I am obsessed with her in a not healthy way. You are laughing at me and making fun of me, don't try to deny it. You've been calling me stalker for weeks. I did not want to sound crazy. I mean until Charlie came to me two hours ago, I did believe that I was turning mad. »

Fred rolled his eyes and ordered him to get to the point. George scolded his twin. Sometimes, he wished that Fred could be less insensitive. Percy was suffering and if they had not been mocking him that much then perhaps they would not be in such a dangerous situation.

Fred sighed, a deep and long sigh. He apologized and this time, he, gently, asked Percy to purse.

Percy looked into Fred's eyes and said that there was not much to say. Most likely, a Death Eater was using Audrey's body to spy on them, all and they needed more proofs.

He then told them that Kingsley had summoned a meeting at 7pm at the burrow. He said that Kingsley wanted to share the information with the rest of the members of the Order so they could work on a strategy to unmask « Audrey ».

Fred interrupted his brother, he was getting suspicious. As most of the young witches that were part of the Order would be at Luna's why would Kingsley call in for a meeting with just the men of the Order. Moreover, if they were right and a Death Eater was using Audrey's identity then it meant that the girls were in danger at Luna's.

Percy tried to keep a straight face. He had anticipated this one but reality was harder to make up than his mind's plan.

He smiled genuinely and said that Kingsley simply did want the girls to have some fun. As for the fake Audrey, Percy affirmed that nothing would happen at Luna's.

« You cannot be sure about that Percy. » answered Fred worriedly

« I know Fred but that fake Audrey has to go to this party. She has to act like the real Audrey. Look if Charlie had not found the box of sweets in her pocket, he would have never put two and two together. For now, the fake Audrey is not trying anything but acting like the real Audrey. »

It must had been his lucky minute of the day as it seemed that neither Fred or George had something to say about that. Well, Fred said that he would tell Hermione to be careful but as he did promise to tell Hermione to do not share the info with any of the girls, Percy did not do anything to stop him.

At least one of the girls would be on her guard and it was better if that girl was Hermione as the Death Eaters wanted something that she had stolen.

He looked at his watch, it was 5:30pm, he had to go. He was done with the twins. He left their shop with an odd feeling of guilt mixed with a certain feeling of satisfaction.

...

Fred left the shop too. He went to Grimmauld Place to inform Hermione. He made her promise to be careful and to use her magic mirror to call him if she was seeing something wrong.

« Fred, I swear that I will call you if I need you and I swear that I won't tell Ginny. Please don't worry, I am gonna be fine besides I am gonna be there only few hours. »

« I know but I am scared for you. Can't wait to destroy that damn time turner so we won't have to worry about all this ever again. » sighed Fred

« Agree. You pick me up at 10? » smiled Hermione

« I will be there at 9:50. I love you Hermione, be careful. »

« Fred, the worst thing that can happen to me tonight is food poisoning and a headache after listening the word nargles for the hundredth time. I see you later and I love you too. » answered a happy Hermione.

She kissed him goodbye before to push him back into the chimney. She was not worried about « Audrey », anyway why would she?

...

part II coming soon.

And we have only 4 chapters left.


	50. Chapter 44 part I

New chapter,

Here we go with the first part of the chapter with the last battle.

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Hermione was at Luna's, she had been there for a bit less than an hour but she was already bored. More than bored, she was feeling ill at ease as she was not really friends with any of the girls except Ginny and Luna.

Hermione sighed, did she really consider Luna her friend? She did not know.

She snorted and looked at the blonde witch who had just used a charm on birds' paper to make them sing as if they were real birds. It was lovely but not really what Hermione would do with her magic.

Fred had told her many times that she was too practical with her magic which was the truth, indeed. He was pushing her to use her magic to have fun just like Luna was doing in that moment. Yes, Luna definitely knew how to enjoy her magic.

...

Hermione was thinking about her presence at Luna's party. She had never spent time with Luna, alone and frankly she was not looking forward to be ever left alone with Luna. The thought was bothering her. Fred had insinuated several times that Luna was not her friend. He had told her that she did not really like the odd witch and deep down Hermione knew that he was right. Yes, her opinion on Luna had changed but that was all.

She had sworn that she would make an effort with Luna when Luna had helped her, with Ginny and Andromeda, to get ready for her first date with Fred. She had forgotten about that promise. She had not even tried to spend time with Luna after that afternoon.

Should she still try though? Again, Hermione did not really know what to answer to that thought...

...

...

Hermione glanced at the clock, it was past 7pm but she still had more than three hours to spend in that house. She had hoped that some of the girls would be late but her wish had not be granted. Except Audrey who had not arrived yet, all the girls had arrived at 6pm sharp.

Audrey had been invited from necessity as she was present at the Burrow when Luna had announced that she was throwing a party. She had even asked Luna if she was invited too. Luna, kind as always, had answered positively. Luna's answer had not seemed overdone moreover Audrey had been thrilled to be invited so Hermione was trying to understand why the talented American witch had not arrived yet.

...

The announcement of the party had been done before Alicia and Audrey's fight, perhaps this was the reason why Audrey had decided not to come. Hermione would have probably not come if she had fought with Alicia. Besides, Alicia and Audrey were still not on speaking terms so why would Audrey, who was older than all of them, even older than Fleur, bother herself with that stupid party?

And Alicia was not the only problem. Alicia was kind, sort of, but Angelina that was another story. The evening after the fight, Audrey had ran into Angelina, Katie and Alicia at the Leaky Cauldron and of course Angelina had to open her mouth. She had not insulted the head of the Aurors' department, she was too classy for that though her words had been enough to force Audrey to leave the bar. Audrey had, indeed, a good reason to do not show up: the harpies' chaser.

Or perhaps, Percy was right and Audrey was the spy, well whoever had taken her identity and that person would obviously not be interested on attending a girls' party.

From Hermione's point of view, this option was more believable but Fred had told her that Percy was sure that « Audrey » would go to Luna's. He was convinced, and had convinced, Fred that the spy had to act like the real Audrey would do.

...

Hermione did not know what to think. She wanted to ask Luna if Audrey had sent an owl or something. She was desirous to know if Percy's theory could be more than just a theory. In front of Fred, earlier, she had tried to do not show any sign of panic, Fred was worried enough for them both but the truth was that she was as scared as her boyfriend.

At least in few hours, the time turner would be destroyed. Not having their lives, hers specially, being rythme by the time turner would be strange. It was almost the end of July, her life had been focused on that damn time turner for approximately ten weeks, quite a journey. However, Hermione did not regret anything, she never would. Actually, using that time turner had been the best decision that she had ever taken. Fred had agreed, even George had.

...

Hermione was truly happy, she was so in love with Fred. They were so happy and in love. Fred's love was giving her wings. She had never thought that love could have such a powerful effect on her self confidence. She was even reconsidering her decision about going back to Hogwarts. Fred did not know about that, it was her decision to take.

...

...

She had another glance at the clock again, only ten minutes had passed. Disappointed, she sighed, again, and raised her gaze to look at all the girls that were around her.

Lavender was speaking, must be something important, something that she had read on witch weekly or heard at the office judging by the way that the others were looking at her. She could also just be babbling about her new job at witch weekly. Yes, Lavender had got the internship at the magazine. She had started on the 1st of July and since that day, she had not stopped rambling about her marvelous job.

Hermione was happy for Lavender but unlike the others, she had no interest on the magazine. She was really wondering if she should not have lied to Andromeda. She could have said that she was going to the party without actually going. She bit her lips, no that would have been wrong. She would never lie to Andromeda, she could not.

...

She heard Ginny's laugh, it made her smile. Ginny was her only real friend in the room. Yet, Ginny had not become her friend by choice. For a long time, Ginny would barely talk to her at school.

With a knot in her throat, Hermione was observing the girls who were laughing. She did not even now why they were laughing. Ginny turned to look at her and told her to come closer. Hesitantly, Hermione moved her chair closer to the others. She had to make an effort, she had made a promise to Fred.

...

Fred and George were so loved. They were friendly, most of the time, and effortlessly making friends. Hermione wished that she could befriend people so easily but she had never been good at befriending people. If it had not been for the troll, she would have never befriended Harry and Ron, she was sure about this. She had always been lonely at school, before Hogwarts, and it was safe to assume that she would have been lonely, at Hogwarts, if it had not been for the troll.

She had talked about her problem with Fred. He had told her that she was just too uptight, it was scaring people. Her attitude was pushing people away.

Fred was teaching her how to look and be nicer at first sight. Fred's classes were working, sort of, with people she had not met yet but she knew all the girls in the room and they knew her too. Most of them did not really appreciated her, neither did she.  
Fred had hinted that the problem was coming from her, an idea that she had not taken well but Fred had given her facts. He had refreshed her memory about few things that she had said like for example about Lavender's rabbit or how she had been constantly mocking the girls' love for divination...

Except with Angelina who was really considering Hermione an enemy, Fred was quite sure that Hermione could become friends with most of the girls of the group.

Fred had suggested her to try first with Luna, Lavender and Alicia. Luna because she already cared about her. Lavender because they knew each other's well. They had shared a room for 6 years and even if it was true that they had never been friendly towards each other's, they had never really been fighting either. Both cared about different things but at the same time both had more in common than what they wanted to see. Indeed, they were both very loyal, brave, passionate and had a thing for redheads.

As for Alicia, Fred had affirmed many times that Alicia was the best friend that Hermione needed. Hermione highly doubted that she would ever exchange more than ten words with Alicia but Fred knew Alicia better than her, so when the opportunity would come, she would try.

...

Over the last few weeks, she had already spent time with the girls. Also, she knew that she would have to spend a lot of time with them in the future as most of them could become family.

She bit her lips, Lavender and possibly Angelina, if one day she would accept to give chance to George, could become her sisters in law. The thought was so dreadful that it almost made her laugh.

Ginny did spot the smile on Hermione's face. Perplexe, she raised an eyebrow. Hermione shrugged as answer before to finally decide to pay attention to the rest of the girls and their conversation.

...

The conversation was definitely not one of Hermione's favorite subject. They were babbling about what the seer, the friend of Fleur's mother, had seen: a baby Weasley for next spring.

Fleur had just shared with the girls that she was a bit late which had made the girls gasped and chirped. Hermione did not know if she should congratulate Fleur or not. What if Fleur was not pregnant? What if the baby boy that her mother's friend had seen was not Fleur's?

Hermione knew how much Bill and Fleur wanted a baby but she had read a lot over the years and lot about werewolves. Across some of her reading, she had learnt that it was very complicated for werewolves to breed with other species, except witches. Fleur was not just a witch, Veelas were also very complicated when it come to breeding. It was a very complicated match. Hermione truly doubted that the lovely little redhead would be Fleur and Bill's. She would be happy for them, of course, if it was their baby. Yet, she believed that it was too soon to celebrate.

She had not crossed that line with Fred yet. They had been close to, several times but Hermione being Hermione she wanted it to be perfect. There also another thing was still blocking her to have sex with Fred, getting pregnant. A part of her was afraid that the baby redhead could be her and Fred's baby. Andromeda had sworn that the potion that Hermione was taking was the most efficient but it was not enough to completely reassure her. Andromeda had also told her that getting pregnant would be a risk anyway, always.

As far as Hermione knew, all the girls in the room, except herself, already had sex, perhaps she could use that party to learn few things. Perhaps, listening to the other girls would help her to finally take the plunge.

How to get to the point though? She could not just open that talk, could she?

...

...

Fortunately for Hermione, it did not take long for the conversation to drift from Fleur's possible pregnancy to sex. Luna had shared her disastrous first experience with Neville and how it was slowly getting better. Ginny said that she was loosing her patience with Harry and bitching about her first time with Dean. The rest of the girls followed.

Hermione had been pleased to hear that Katie's first time with George had been amazing even though it was also his first time. Angelina had also been very satisfied with her first experience with Roger Davis. Roger Davis had known how to comfort her.

Hermione had been expecting Angelina to mention Fred at some point but she did not. Hermione knew that they had never slept together, she trusted Fred but she had assumed that Angelina was the type of girls to lie about stuff like that just to hurt others. She had been wrong, happy wrong indeed.

...

Hermione was not really speaking but she was enjoying the talk. It was really different from the few talks that she had about it with her mother and even different from the ones that she had with Andromeda. The experiences of the girls around her were feeling more real to her.

After a while, she was not even blushing. She even wished that she had a quill or a pen and a piece of paper with her so she could have taken notes. She had forgotten about Audrey's absence. She was having fun. Fred would be proud of her.

She was about to ask few questions when Lavender asked Alicia who had been her first. Angelina and Katie's smiles faded. It looked like Lavender had made a mistake.

...

Alicia had not been really talking to anyone since she had arrived. She was not the most talkative person on earth, they all knew that but now that Hermione was thinking about it, Alicia had been quieter than usual.

Lately, many rumors about Charlie, Audrey and her were feedings the hallways of the Ministry so it was possible that just like Audrey, Alicia had not want to come to Luna's party. Angelina might had dragged her to Luna's.

...

Hermione, and the others, were looking at Alicia and Lavender. The colorful living had been plunged into a heavy silence.

At first, Hermione thought that Alicia would not answer the question but she did. It had taken her more than a minute to spit out the name, a name that surprised the others, except her two best friends. The name was Cedric Diggory.  
Alicia's blues eyes were looking down. She was still visibly ashamed.

« It was the summer before our sixth year. We were doing an internship at the Ministry, Aurors' department. We were the youngest. Because of the Quidditch world cup, they had taken many intern that summer. It was before the raise of Voldemort, the atmosphere was different, chill, sort of. We went out one night, right before the competition. I was a bit sad that evening so was Cedric, we were drunk and we did it. If it hurt, I don't remember, I was too drunk to notice anyway. I barely remember it. I am not proud of that moment. Cedric cheated on Cho, I was too heartbroken to care. When we awoken the next morning, we promised to never talk about it, to forget about it and I kind of did.» explained Alicia confusedly

« She just told me and Katie. Funny is how we both lost our virginity after being heartbroken. Heartbroken because of two Weasleys. » said Angelina to drift the attention away from her best friend.

It did not work well.

« Angie. » shot Alicia who had turned crimson

Angelina mumbled a sorry.

...

Hermione was relieved. For a brief second, Hermione had believed that it had been Fred. He had said that he had a one night stand with a girl that he did not know. Hermione knew that he had lied about that. She had seen it in his eyes, he remembered the name of the girl, he just did not want to share it.

Alicia and Fred were very good friends. Besides, Alicia never had a real boyfriend, they could have hooked up and kept it secret from their friends. It could have happened, thankfully it had not.

Another thing was bothering her though. After listening to Alicia and Angelina, Hermione was wondering who was the Weasley boy who had broken Alicia's heart. Despite the rumors at the Ministry, Hermione could not picture a 16 years old Alicia heartbroken because of Charlie. He was not even around. Back then, he was living in Romania.

It had to be one of the twins, who else could it be anyway? She would have to find out which one...

...

...

After that awkward confession, the girls agreed that they needed a drink. Apparently, none of them really wanted to dig more secrets, not even Lavender who usually always had her shovel ready...

They had decided to have some fancy Muggle's drinks like Bloody Mary. Unfortunately, Luna had mistaken Martini with Vodka when she had gone to the supermarket. Hermione volunteered to go to the shop, down the street, to buy a bottle. She had not planned to drink any Bloody Mary or any other alcoholic beverages but she needed to be alone to think about Alicia's confession and what it would mean if the guy that had let Alicia heartbroken was Fred.

It did not make any sense. Angelina was the one who dated Fred, not Alicia but that story had happened before Angelina and Fred became a thing. Hermione really needed to get out.

She took her purse, her denim jacket and hurried to the door until she heard Alicia's voice behind her.

« Wait, I will go with you. »

Hermione froze. Did this mean that she was right? Was Alicia coming with her to tell her the truth? Well at least, she would know so she smiled at Alicia and both left Luna's house.

...

...

Part two will be darker but I hope you have enjoyed the casualness of this first part. part two in a couple of weeks or less. Until then, stay safe.


	51. Chapter 44 part II

New chapter,

I posted the first chapter exactly one year ago. Thanks for reading, favoriting and following :)))

gypsykl79 welcome :)

and for this week Maggster145 welcome :)

xx,

...

Hermione and Alicia did not speak for the first few minutes. Hermione would not be the one to ask things first. Alicia had wanted to come, then it was her job to do the talking.

...

They were almost at the shop when Alicia finally spoke. Surprisingly straightforward, she asked Hermione if it was true that Charlie had moved in with the twins. Surprised, Hermione simply nodded.

Alicia then asked many things like if Charlie was ok, if he had said something about the rumors or her, if he had a boyfriend...  
Suddenly, she stopped. She had realized that this was ridiculous. She was acting like a crazy girl.

...

The two witches were staring at each other's, trying to read each other's mind.

Hermione was confused. Why was Alicia so interesting in knowing about Charlie's whereabouts?

As for Alicia, she knew that she had to gain Hermione's sympathy but she did not know how. She did not want to sound crazier so she chose to just go for the truth.

« Look Hermione, I know that you and Angelina aren't exactly best pals and either you decide to believe me or not, you should know that Angelina is not my boss and that I am free to speak with whoever I want. » started the brunette

« I know that but I have known you for what seven, eight years now and as far as I can remember you have never talked to me, directly. What do you want? » snapped Hermione

She did not let Alicia answer, she had to add something before.

« If you had come to tell me that Fred is the one who had broken your heart, well I had guessed and I would rather be alone with my thoughts than talking to you about this. » finished Hermione who was trying to stay calm

Alicia's eyes grew wider. She had never been in love with Fred. He was her best friend, nothing more.  
She looked into Hermione's eyes and swore that she never had feelings for him.

Hermione rolled her eyes, a sign to express her exasperation.

The thin witch who was still looking into Hermione's eyes, did not know what else to say to convince Hermione. She took a deep breath and affirmed, again, that she was not lying.

...

...

After two long minutes, Hermione, who was still staring at Alicia in a suspicious way, asked the Auror why she had come with her if it was not to talk about Fred.

Alicia sighed and said that she had not joined her to get on her nerves or to be bashing about her and Fred. She even said that she was happy for them. Fred deserved to be happy with the girl of his dreams.  
She had only decided to come with her to speak about Charlie.

She seemed honest so Hermione relaxed a bit, a bit only.

Alicia noticed. She tried to take advantage of this time off to ask again about Charlie. She was insisting, a lot. She had to know. Yet, shd could tell that Hermione was befuddled so she told Hermione that she was desperate. Was she acting like a mad lady? She no longer cared...

...

Unfortunately, Hermione had nothing to tell her, well nothing that could help her. Yes, Charlie was temporarily living with Fred and George as Percy was getting on his nerves. Yet, Charlie had not even said why Percy was annoying him. Charlie was not very loquacious, never had been.

Moreover, Hermione was quite sure that he had not mentioned Alicia or even pronounced her name, not even once, since he had moved in.

As Hermione was finishing her sentence, Alicia was looking at her watch. She did not want Hermione to spot any tear. She told Hermione that they had to hurry up while she was already pushing the door of the local shop.

...

Hermione noticed that Alicia was tearful when they entered into the shop but she did not make any comment.

They bought two bottles of Vodka instead of one. Hermione had not wanted to purchase a second bottle but Alicia had insisted, they would need it, she would need it.

Hermione bit her lips, she was starting to understand what was really going on. She was dying to know the truth but Alicia was not her friend and Hermione did not want to seem uncaring or too curious. Alicia looked so miserable that it was painful to look at her.

...

...

Out of the store, Alicia opened one of the bottles and drunk a fair gulp of the colorless liquid. Hermione was still observing her in silent. She had put two and two together, rumors were certainly true. Alicia and Audrey must had really fought because of their feelings for Charlie but what else could be there? Something big for sure.

Hermione wanted to comfort Alicia but she did not how. Charlie was gay, why fighting about him. It was odd. It was a lost cause, was not it? Obviously, she could not say that to Alicia, it would not help her.

She had to say something though so she asked, in her most neutral tone, Alicia if she was ok. Alicia shook her head.

« No, I am not Hermione but that's my problem. If Fred and George ever find out a potion that could make you forget about your feelings for someone, let me know, I will buy a full box. » answered Alicia before to take another gulp of Vodka.

Hermione bit her lips, at that rythme Alicia would be drunk before to be back at Luna's party. Gently, she asked if the rumors were true. Alicia nodded. She chuckled and said that they were not rumors, they were facts. She was in love with Charlie. Audrey had understood and threatened her to speak with Kingsley.

As Hermione was frowning, Alicia explained that Audrey did have a crush on Charlie at the beginning of their cooperation but not anymore. Unlike the rumors were saying Audrey had never tried to flirt with Charlie. Neither had she tried to seduce him. However, she had witnessed Alicia and Charlie flirting with each other's several times. She had held her tongue as long as it was harmful.

« What do you mean by harmful, how could flirting with Charlie be anything but harmful? He is gay, he likes men. » affirmed Hermione who was quite confused

« We have slept together. » dropped Alicia

And Hermione almost dropped the bag that contained the other bottle of Vodka. She would have never imagined something like this. Alicia was telling the truth, Hermione was positive about that.

...

Hermione was shocked. She had questions, many and she did not stop herself from asking.

Alicia took a deep breath and told her what did happen the night that she had been released from St Mungo.

«Charlie picked me up and drove me to my apartment, I live in Muggles London. Well, we had dinner and we had been drinking a bit, not much, just enough for us to loose our inhibitions. Before, I could realize what was going on, we were in my bedroom, on my bed half naked. I woke up the next morning, alone and naked in my bed, it hurt. I had thought that maybe we, never mind it doesn't matter» said an ashamed Alicia

« You do really like him, don't you. » asked Hermione gently

Alicia nodded, she still had tears in her blue eyes. She shared with Hermione a very special memory, her first real encounter with Charlie. It was during her first year, in September 1989, in the Great Hall before her first flying class.

« We needed few more brooms, so Mrs Hooch had sent me to ask Charlie Weasley, the Quidditch captain, the keys to the broomsticks' cabinet. I did not really know who he was. I knew that he was a Gryffindor but I had not really met him at that point. »

She stopped, she had never told anyone about her feelings for Charlie. Angelina and Katie were the only exceptions. Sharing all this with Hermione Granger was so odd. Hermione was not known for her compassion, yet Alicia had the feeling that Hermione was more sympathetic than what people believed.

She briefly met Hermione's brown eyes before to pursue:

« I had been looking for him for a while and when I found him, it was like if I had been hit by bludgers. He was so damn beautiful. Remember Fred and George's long hair during our sixth year, well Charlie was looking better than that. I had a crush on him until he graduated. Actually, my crush never really disappeared, I had dreams, silly dreams that got smashed when he came for holidays, summer 1994.» sighed Alicia before to continue

« He came at the Ministry, I had not seen him for three years, I turned crimson when I saw him but he was oblivious, as always. Well, I thought that he was. Sorry, I am rambling. Anyway, there were rumors about him liking men. It was the case already during his last year at school. Quidditch captain, gorgeous as hell, popular, cool but no girlfriend, not even a holiday fling, well it made students talked but I was young and silly, I did not want to believe it. »

Hermione was staring at Alicia. How would she have reacted if people had said that Fred was gay? What would she have done?  
Alicia thought that she was bothering the young witch. She apologized and said that they should go. Hermione stopped her.

« You are not bothering me at all, I was just trying to picture myself in your position. Alicia, please go ahead. You obviously need to talk about it. » encouraged Hermione with a smile

« I do. So to get to the point, as I have already said, there were many interns that summer and one of them, hooked up with Charlie. This time, I had no choice but to believe it. My mother is a muggle born and my father half blood, I've always lived in Muggle London, this is where I saw Charlie and a guy from his year, Peter Brown, kissing. It was not far from the Leaky Cauldron, in a small alley. They weren't just kissing Hermione, they were eating each other's mouths. Two days later, I was sleeping with Cedric because why not? I no longer had any reason to wait » said Alicia with a shivering voice and tears falling on her cheeks

...

Fred's words were resonating in Hermione's ears. She was feeling the need to hug Alicia.  
Could Alicia really be the girl best friend that she needed? They definitely had more in common than she had imagined. She was wondering how would Fred, and George, react, about Alicia and Charlie...

They would be shocked. They had never used the word romantic or mushy to describe their friend, nobody ever had...

Would they be pleased? Hermione was not sure.  
She shook her head, she would have plenty of time to think about that later. For now, she had to say something nice. She did and Alicia smiled at her.

« I had seen him few times over the last years but never long enough to think further than gosh, still gorgeous. I thought that I was cured but then Kingsley had paired us in the same team and that was when problems started. I feel so stupid. » finished Alicia who was still crying

« Charlie is really good looking and he has such a great personality, I understand why you have fallen for him. For quite some time, I thought that I was over Fred. I had just been good at lying to myself, you aren't the only one who had done that»

« But Fred loves you. The bloke is going to marry you and make you Merlin knows how many kids. That thing between Charlie and I, it was a mistake. I have broken the Aurors' laws, I could loose my job for what a bloke that is avoiding me since we had sex. I know that the Weasleys men are like that avoiding problems. Yet, I had hoped that Charlie would be different. » complained Alicia

Hermione asked her what she was planning to do.

« Nothing. I am not going to try to confront him. If he had said something, I would have but now I know that it would just be a waste of time. I am a big girl, I can handle it and deal with the consequences of that night.» she answered elusively

« Well at least you can say that you had got something that no one else will ever have, well women not men obviously. Not sure, it is a great comfort though. You know where to find me if you ever wanna talk about it. I am really sorry Alicia » said Hermione gently

« So am I. Charlie broke my heart, more than once but it is all my fault. » she said while muffling a sob

Then she said that she was thinking about transferring. She needed to be alone and away for a while. She told Hermione that she knew about her parents, about her dad who was still missing. Kingsley needed more Aurors to go to Australia and New Zealand to look for him. Once they would have caught Dolohov and company, Alicia was thinking about going there and stay there for a while.

Hermione thanked her. They talked a bit about Hermione's mother, how long it could take for her to remember everything about her daughther...

« Do you think it is stupid to run away. » asked Alicia seriously

Hermione had run away, sort of, she knew what letting everything behind meant.

« No, I don't think that it is stupid but I am not sure that the distance will make your feelings go away. They say out of sight, out of mind but it did not work for me or Fred. » said Hermione who was wondering if Alicia's words could have a double meaning.

« But again, you two are meant to be together. Charlie and I aren't. As you said he is gay. Anyway, we should go. Enough sorrows for tonight. Will you keep my secret? » asked Alicia worriedly

« Yes, we should go and yes, I will keep your secrets. You will find the right guy for you Alicia. » affirmed Hermione with a smile.

Alicia smiled back. It was too soon to confirm anything but it looked like a friendship had begun between the two young witches.

...

...

After that talk, they walked in silence to Luna's house.

It was now very dark and getting colder. They were shivering. Alicia said that it was strange. The sky was so clear when they had left and so cloudy now. A storm was coming, a bad one.

« You know when you arrived to Azkaban it does feel like that. Like it can't be sunny there because of the Dementors. »

Hermione froze, she was having a bad feeling. Alicia was right, invasion of Dementors felt exactly like that. She shared Percy's thought with Alicia. Surprisingly, Alicia believed Percy. She was cursing, he should have talked to her.

She was scared and so was Hermione...

...

Frightened, the two witches looked around but did not see anything until they arrived in front of Luna's house.

The house was, indeed, surrounded by Dementors. Alicia grabbed Hermione's hand and told her to conjure her patronus. Hermione obeyed.

« It looks like Audrey, the spy, has arrived from Azkaban. She was supposed to go there this afternoon. I hope that she had just brought Dementors with her. Bitch must be inside already. Hermione, I have to send a message to the rest of the Aurors but I hope that you are ready to fight because the Aurors might take some time to arrive. » said Alicia worriedly

Hermione nodded. She was ready to fight. She had always known that there would be another battle after Hogwarts. At least, Fred was safe. He was not an Auror or an active member of the Order of the Phoenix at the moment so she was joining this fight with the certitude that she would not loose him.

Hermione firmly pressed Alicia's hand and smiled.

They walked towards the house, wands up. They were ready to fight.

When they stepped into the house, Dolohov, Rookwood, Greyback who was holding two Audreys and about ten more Death Eaters welcomed them.

...

Battle was supposed to be in this chapter but I don't want to post long, too long, chapters, so it will be the next one

I hope that you are enjoying the storyline between Alicia and Charlie. I will post next chapter in two/three weeks until then stay safe.


	52. Chapter 45

New chapter

I am sorry for the long delay but the last month had been hectic for me. I had a lot of things to deal with. Also, I must confess that those chapters with the battle had been complicated for me to write. At some point, when I started to write this story, I even did think about skipping the description of the battle and just explained what had happened. As the full battle part is more or less 6 different chapters to post here, I am still not convinced that I have made the right decision whrn did write all this but well here it is.

nintschibintschi welcome :)

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And finally for this week SkyLion27 welcome )

Thanks for following this fic, more than 200 followers, I am so happy about it :)

Xx

...

...

Hermione and Alicia looked at their friends just to be sure that they were ok. The girls were standing, wands up, they looked ready to fight even though they were outnumbered.

Alicia asked what was going on. Dolohov smiled at the two witches. He said that he was glad that they had finally arrived as festivities could not start without them.

Hermione bit her lips wondering why nobody was fighting. What were the girls waiting for?

She looked around and her eyes met Audrey's, the real Audrey, she was the reason why the girls had not started to fight. Greyback was firmly holding her. His grip was definitely too strong for Audrey to try anything. The head of the Aurors looked exhausted. She even seemed too weak to stand by herself. She was in bad shape, dirty clothes, nasty wounds and bloody scratches on her arms and face but the worst was her terrified gaze.

Hermione's eyes became wet just by thinking about what the poor Audrey could have endured during her captivity.

She was trying to listen what was Dolohov saying but she was too absorbed in her inner world to pay attention. That was true until Dolohov pointed his finger at her.

All the persons in the room followed Dolohov's index. Hermione did not look down, she had a good idea of what Dolohov could say, it was time to assume what she had done. Silently, she let Dolohov explain that they had come to get two artifacts, without clearly saying what they were though. He said that they did not want to fight, they just wanted those two magical objects. In exchange of course, Audrey would be freed.

Luna said that she would give them whatever they wanted as long as they would leave without hurting anyone. Dolohov requested the special time turner of her father. As an answer, Luna ran across the room to the stairs where she disappeared.

Hermione's gaze followed the blonde witch until she completely disappeared from her sight. Her heart was pounding in her chest, the Death Eaters had understood what good use they could make of the time turners.

With Fred, George and Percy, they had figured out, days ago, what the Death Eaters' plan could be. Yet, they had been too preoccupied about themselves to speak to someone. They had their own plan to destroy the Death Eaters' one, unfortunately the Death Eaters had been faster than them, a couple of hours faster...

Under other circumstances, Hermione would have laughed about their bad timing but for now she just wanted to end this.  
She should not have underestimated the Death Eaters. With the boys, they had been too confident. They had made several mistakes and like it did happen often with Harry and Ron, their mistake had led them to this dangerous situation and obviously they had dragged their innocent friends with them...

Hermione bit her lips harder, she needed to learn better from her mistakes.

...

Less than a minute later, Luna was back with her father's artifact.

Dolohov smiled and said that he wished that everybody would be as nice as Luna. While he was saying that he was looking at Hermione and then he added:

« What about you Miss Granger, will you give us what we want? »

« I would, I swear I would but I don't have it. » replied Hermione who was well aware of the fact that the girls were all holding their breathes.

Dolohov chuckled and then sighed. He was really disappointed. He said that he had thought that Hermione was smart, smarter than the rest of the witches in this room. How could he have been so wrong all this time? Was not she supposed to be the brightest witch of her age, of her generation?

Hermione interrupted his melodramatic speech. She swore that she was not lying. Dolohov replied that he was losing his patience.

He argued with Hermione for a couple of minutes. He tried all sort of spells to make her speak. Encouraged by the rest of the Death Eaters, he even used the cruciatus curse. He only stopped when he reckoned that Hermione was not lying. Obviously, he did not apologize. After all, for him torturing a mudblood was not a crime. Nevertheless, Hermione was surprised that Dolohov had not exposed her secret yet. It was as if a part of him did not want to reveal what she had done.

Hermione dared to look into his eyes where she read nothing but amusement. Dolohov was clearly enjoying this cat/mouse game and yes Hermione was the mouse.

...

The girls were observing the scene in silence, they were lost. Alicia, Ginny and even Lavender and the Patil's twins had tried to step in but Hermione had forbidden them to move further. She was trying to save time until the arrival's of the Aurors. If she had let them, a deadly fight would have started. It would come but the later, the better.

Watching her on a solo against Dolohov was painful, why did Hermione refuse their help?

Alicia was the only one who had understood that Hermione was trying to save time. She carefully glanced at the clock, almost 15min had passed, the Aurors should arrive soon. She had sent a red code, a code that could only be sent when an Auror was in an extremely dangerous situation while out of duty.

...  
...

As the verbal jousting was still going strong between Dolohov and Hermione, the girls were all wondering what could Hermione possibly have that the Death Eaters wanted so much?

Clueless, they waited for the bomb to be dropped. At some point, Dolohov finally dropped it and when he did they all stared dubiously, mistrustfully and even disdainfully at Hermione.

« Yes, yes my darlings, our lovely witch is the one who stole the time turner of Professor McGonagall. Who else could have done it? She knew where it was and she knew how to use it. I am sorry that I have to tell you like this but we are a bit in a hurry so if you have more questions just interrogate Miss Granger later. Now Miss Granger, are you going to give me that damn time turner or should I kill one of your friends to convince you that we won't leave without it. »

« I have told you already, I do not have it. I did have it for weeks around my neck but I took it off days ago. » answered Hermione coolly

Dolohov rolled his eyes, he really hated Hermione. Losing his patience, he told her:

« You are not wearing it, fine just go get it then. I would go with you but I am afraid that we haven't brought polyjuice potion with us so, we will, all, wait here for you to bring it to me. »

Hermione did not want to obey but she had no choice, they were outnumbered by the Death Eaters. If Dolohov was really going to let her go alone then she would have time to inform Kingsley. Besides, Alicia had informed the Aurors, so if they were lucky, the Aurors would arrive soon and fight against the Death Eaters. With the help of the Aurors then the Death Eaters would be outnumbered. No one would be harmed and the Death Eaters would finally get arrested. The nightmare would end for good so she had to do this.

...

As she was opening her mouth to say that she agreed, Mr Lovegood stormed into the room yelling and cursing at the Death Eaters. Less than ten seconds later, curses and jinxes were flying over the room.

Hermione sighed then raised her wand and jumped into what she hoped to be the real last battle of this war.

...

...

In the meantime

Fred, George, Ron, Bill and Percy were at the burrow with their parents. For an unkown reason, the Order's meetings had been canceled. Well, this was what Percy had told them when he had arrived. Fred and Bill believed that he was lying but he was not, well not really. He had got a patronus from Kingsley ordering him to cancel the meeting about 10 minutes to leave the Ministry. He had not shared everything with his family but he had not lied either.

...

The Weasleys were talking about Audrey and the Death Eaters. Bill and Fred were being particularly insistent on the subject, they wanted to know the truth but Percy was not really in the mood to talk.  
He was devastated. He was so scared for Audrey. Mrs Weasley was doing her best to comfort her son but the young man said that he would not be fine until he would finally see Audrey, the real one, again.

Percy was not just crying because of Audrey, he was crying because he had the answers to all of his brothers' questions but he could not tell them anything. Kingsley had made him swear that he would not speak until Charlie would be back from Azkaban. Kingsley wanted to be the one to sound the alarm to call for help and before to do that he needed proofs. Percy wanted to speak, he really wanted to but he did not want to spread terror and fears. After all, there was still a chance that they were wrong.

He looked so sad than Fred and George did not even try to mock his love for the American witch.

Anyway, Fred was way too worried to think about joking. He was glancing at the clock every five minutes. Since Percy had come to the shop earlier, his instincts were telling him that something bad was coming. Besides, he was certain that Percy had voluntarily omitted some details when he had come to inform them about the Audrey's situation. A sobbing Percy was just another proof that there was something more to that story.

Fred looked at the clock again, it was not even 8pm yet. He could not wait two more hours. He just should not have let Hermiome go to that stupid party. He had a very bad feeling about it.  
He had made his decision, instead of 10pm, he would go there at 9pm. It was not as if Hermione was going to be mad at him for coming earlier. She had not even wanted to go and she certainly was not having fun.

In vain, he tried to push Percy to confess but the poor Percy was not even listening to his younger brother. Irritated and convinced that Percy had heard perfectly, Fred yelled few horrible things at Percy.

Mr Weasley and George tried to calm him down but they remained unsuccessful. Percy's silence was just infuriating Fred more than he already was. Also, Bill's attitude was not helping Mr Weasley and George. He did not have Fred's temper yet since he had been bitten by Greyback, he had lost his pacifism.

At least, Ron was calm and Mr Weasley was thankful for that. The last thing that he needed was Ron's bloody temper to awoken. When his sons where kids, it was easy for him and his wife to stop the constant squabbles but his sons were no longer kids, they were men, tall and big men and his voice was getting lost in the flock.

...

...

The situation got worst when Charlie and Harry arrived at the burrow. They had been fighting, only a blind person would not notice.

« It was a trap. Azkaban was a trap. » they both said as they were stepping into the kitchen

All the gaze turned to the two men then Bill and Fred glared at Percy.

« Fake Audrey, it was Rokkwood but he was already gone with many Death Eaters when we arrived but some of their friends were waiting for us. They had everything planned. Kingsley is on his way to the Lovegood's with few Aurors. Neville said that they had got a red code from Alicia. We believe that they » was explaining Charlie before to stop as Fred was running to the door

Fred had to go to the Lovegood's, Hermione was in danger. George followed him and as they were disappearing into the night, Bill yelled at his brothers to wait for him. Charlie, Ron, Percy, Harry and Mr Weasley ran after them letting a scared Mrs Weasley alone in the kitchen.

...

As the men were running to the Lovegoods' house, they could not risk to apparate, Bill ordered Percy and Charlie to tell them what was going on.

« My wife is there and so is our little sister, what the hell is going on?»

« We will explain later » said Fred

Bill shook his head, of course the twins knew. He swore to bit all of them if something happened to his wife or their little sister.

« Maybe we will be a real pack then, brothers with no secrets for each other's specially when lives are threatened. »

« Look Bill, our little sister is there and we all have another woman's life to save so shut up and run faster. » screamed Charlie

Confused Bill obeyed.

Meters away from the Lovegood's house, the smell in the air changed and for a good reason, the house was on fire.

...

Next chapter we will finally be done with the battle and I have decided to take the short way to end up this fic so, we only have two chapters left and the epilogue. There is a longer story but chapters aren't fully written, I have to go through all of them again and to be honest I don't really have the time or the energy to do it at the moment, so I will take the short cut and perhaps later, around Christmas, when I have free time, I will post few of the missing chapters.

I will post next chapter in less than a couple of weeks.


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